Barton Deakin Brief: Development of Outback Way

Date: Feb 2022

Barton Deakin Brief: Development of Outback Way

Overview

Yesterday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce announced that the Government will invest an addition $678 million into sealing more of Outback Way. It is intended that a further 1 000km of road will be sealed, to connect regional and remote comunities and create jobs.

 

Key Details

  • Outback Way is a series of dirt roads and tracks, totaling 2 720km, which connects regional and remote Queensland, the Northern Territory, and Western Australia.
  • The series of roads connects Laverton in WA and Winton in QLD, via Alice Springs in the NT.
  • Outback Way is often described as Australia’s longest shortcut.
  • The Government has promised to seal and improve the entire 2 720km stretch of road. Today’s announcement will complete the sealing 1 000km.
  • Prior to today, $330 million has been invested, resulting in over 600km having already been sealed.
  • According to the Prime Minister, the new commitment will:
    • “Our investment locks in a pipeline of works that will drive investment in regional Australia and boost economies from Winton in Queensland to Laverton in Western Australia.”
  • It is plannedthat the funding will create a total of 2 197 jobs: 671 jobs in QLD, 1 084 jobs in WA, and 442 jobs in the NT.
  • For the entire project, 80% of the funding will be provided by the Federal Government, with the remaining 20% coming from the States and Territories
  • Please see the link below to find a breakdown of which roads will be sealed in the Prime Minister’s Media Release.

Additional Information

You can access the Prime Minister’s Media Release here.

Map of the Outback Way, supplied by Infrastructure Australia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more information, contact David Alexander on +61 457 400 524, Grahame Morris on +61 411 222 680, Cheryl Cartwright on +61 419 996 066, or Samuel Gorman on +61 427 233 108

 

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