Responsible infrastructure investment means we are rebuilding essential services while lowering government debt for the first time in 20 years, all without privatising public assets.
The $770 million Urban Road Fund has reserved funding earmarked for 23 road projects over the next 4 years.
The fund will build major roads in Western Sydney, including improvements to key corridors in Heathcote, Riverstone and smaller projects that connect communities, reduce congestion and improve safety.
Projects include planning for upgrades for the Fifteenth Avenue transit corridor connecting Liverpool and the city of Bradfield, the duplication of sections of Heathcote Road and the upgrade of Hill Road, Homebush.
The Urban Roads Fund also puts $200 million over 2 years into the Western Sydney Floods Resilience Plan.
Projects include:
- Richmond Road Upgrade – M7 to Townson Road
- Pitt Town Bypass
- Garfield Road East Upgrade between Windsor Road, Box Hill and Piccadilly Street, Riverstone
- Upgrade to the intersection of The Driftway and Londonderry Road
Connecting Sydney Roads will allocate $429.8 million to Western Sydney in 2023-24, totalling $3 billion over the 4 years. Projects being delivered will break bottlenecks, re-connect communities and improve safety for all road users.
The Minns Labor Government is rebalancing road investment to focus on projects that support connectivity and development of key road corridors, getting people home sooner and safer.
Key projects funded by Connecting Sydney Roads include:
- $54 million for Mulgoa Road upgrades (NSW and Commonwealth funded)
- $41.4 million for Spring Farm Parkway Stage 1
- $7.6 million for Mamre Road, M4 Motorway to Erskine Park Road
- $68 million for Prospect Highway, Reservoir Road to St Martins Crescent
- $142.9 million for Western Sydney transport corridor preservation.
These are practical, targeted measures that put community connection front and centre in NSW Government spending, rather than the large toll road projects synonymous with the last decade.
The Minns Labor Government promised relief for those hardest hit by the burden of tolls following a decade of privatisation.
This is essential for drivers in Western Sydney who don’t have the public transport alternatives and are reliant on the motorway network for their work commute and other journeys.
We are delivering on that election promise with an expanded toll relief package – a $60 weekly toll cap that will take cost-of-living pressure off the households facing the highest toll burdens.
The NSW Government is also following through on support for the freight industry through a toll relief trial that will provide rebates for trucks travelling on the M5 East and M8.
The trial, which will run from 1 January next year to 31 December 2025, is designed to encourage more trucks to use the motorway network and help address the heavy vehicle traffic that has choked roads and hampered businesses near these toll routes.
Toll relief measures funded in the budget will be put in place as the Independent Toll Review, led by Professor Allan Fels, continues its work ahead of delivering recommendations for long-term reform to government mid-next year.
The Minns Labor Government is committed to supporting our trucking industry in NSW and this budget will provide the necessary funding to begin the work of delivering a heavy vehicle rest area in Western Sydney for drivers to rest, park, shower and access services.
There are very limited rest areas that are fit for purpose between Wyong to the north of Sydney and Pheasants Nest to the south – a distance of 180km.
Road safety is a high priority in the 2023-24 NSW Budget, with a total of $2.6 billion in funding allocated across the next 4 years to continue the government’s commitment to the NSW Road Safety Action Plan 2026.
This will be used in areas including improving road infrastructure, better road planning and design, education campaigns and research – all aimed at saving lives and helping combat a recent rise in the road toll after historic lows during COVID-19.