It’s taken years but it seems that finally both the Federal and State Governments have accepted the urgent need to fix up Appin Road before more people are killed on it.
And now the state opposition has declared that a future NSW Labor Government will commit $50 million to the upgrade of Appin Road.
Campbelltown MP Greg Warren says the money will be used to make the road safer between the booming South West Sydney region and the Illawarra.
The announcement comes on top of the bipartisan commitment of $50 million from Federal Labor and the Federal Coalition in this year’s federal election campaign.
Campbelltown Council general manager Lindy Deitz told last Tueday night’s meeting that the Federal Government had confirmed it would keep its $50 million election promise made during campaigning earlier this year.
The funding will kick-start the long overdue upgrade of Appin Road, which was recognised by the NRMA earlier this year as being one of the most dangerous roads in NSW.
With the NSW Government’s Greater Macarthur Land Release set to see 50,000 new homes built between Campbelltown and the Illawarra in the coming decade, the upgrade of Appin Road will be an important part of the infrastructure plan to accompany this rapid urban growth.
The announcement comes on the back of Mr Warren’s relentless campaigning for the upgrade, including a petition signed by thousands of local residents, a tour of the full length of Appin Road with the Roads Minister and numerous addresses to the NSW Parliament.
“I’ve long been a campaigner for the upgrade of Appin Road, as far back as when I used to drive coal trucks along Appin Road myself many years ago,’’ Mr Warren said yesterday.
“We’ve seen some initial resurfacing and curve realignment works already begin, which are much welcomed, however only Labor is committed to investing the funds required for the full upgrade of Appin Road, as our community expects and deserves.
“This builds on the bipartisan commitment from the federal election and is another big step towards improving safety on Appin Road,” he said.
