Insurer RACQ has expressed disappointment in the federal budget, saying that while it funded some key Queensland projects, it has shortchanged Queenslanders by hundreds of millions of dollars in road and rail investment.
“In the lead-up to the budget, the government talked up its infrastructure spend, but for roads and rail, we’re about $400m down on last year,” said Rebecca Michael, RACQ head of public policy. “This is made worse because it’s delivered 20% less than what it promised. And with road fatalities in Queensland up 20% year to date, now’s not the time to cut road funding in favour of a budget surplus.”
Despite the reduced overall spend, RACQ welcomed investment in some vital Queensland projects, including the Brisbane Metro and the M1, the Bruce Highway, and “the much-needed” Gympie Bypass.
“But unfortunately, Queenslanders will only benefit if the government spends every dollar making sure these projects happen,” Michael said. “We’re also concerned the Urban Congestion Fund, one of the showpieces of the budget, has no money allocated this year. The piggy bank really is empty on this one – $1bn of the government’s budget for infrastructure is worth nothing unless it’s elected next year.”
Queensland's peak motoring club also urged cooperation between the Queensland and Turnbull governments to ensure budgeted projects get the funding required to get the projects off the ground.
“We need the state and federal governments to ensure we don’t lose more time, funding, and potentially lives by getting caught up in a political blame game,” Michael said. “Let’s make sure every dollar budgeted is spent this year.”
