PRIME Minister Scott Morrison promised $30 million to ease congestion on the Mount Lindesay Highway during a visit to Emmaus College at Jimboomba this morning.
The money will be spent in consultation with the Queensland government, which is responsible for the highway.
Mr Morrison said the $130 million set aside to fix traffic headaches on the M1, Mount Lindesay Highway and Ipswich Motorway was all about ensuring people get home to their families sooner.
“Getting stuck in traffic means you miss dinner with loved ones, or you can’t help the kids with homework. I want to give that time back to hardworking families,” he said.
“Families have got to spend more time together, so when I think about the Mount Lindesay Highway, I’m not thinking about asphalt and roads...I’m thinking about parents getting home sooner. I’m thinking about parents getting home safer,” he said.
Acting mayor of Logan Cherie Daley said the funding would not fix all the issues on the highway, but was a step in the right direction.
“What we’d really like to see is recognition of the Mt Lindesay Highway as a national highway, a business case for an end-to-end solution and priority funding to deliver it,” she said.
"Council has long been advocating to the State and Federal Government to make this road safer for our residents – it is consistently rated as one of the most dangerous in Queensland.
"Our FairShare4Logan campaign calls for an end-to-end solution rather than ad hoc fixes for the 40,000 vehicles that travel on it daily."
There have been 409 crashes, resulting in 12 fatalities and 255 hospital visits on the Logan stretch of the highway over the past eight years.
Assistant Transport Minister and Wright MP Scott Buchholz said extra funding for the M1 and Mount Lindesay Highway would be welcomed in his electorate.
“This will help improve safety on the Mount Lindesay Highway, allow local residents to spend more time with their families, and let local tradies spend more time on the tools rather than being stuck in traffic,” he said.
“A stronger economy means more locals travelling to jobs and freight on the roads but the downside is increasing traffic congestion, which is consistently raised with me in Wright and I’m pleased this announcement will help bring some relief.”
State Labor member for Logan Linus Power said he would like to see the federal government support road widening projects south from Granger Road and Stoney Camp Road.
“I would like to see that continue beyond Chambers Flat Road and the Greenbank Road intersection,” he said.
“I am pleased that Des Hardman as the federal Labor candidate for Forde put pressure on the government to stump up for the Mount Lindesay Highway.”
The announcement is part of $244 million package of infrastructure projects across south-east Queensland this week.
