Member for Port Macquarie Leslie Williams has confirmed funding for the sealing of the contentious Maria River Road will fall under the Fixing Local Roads program.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
The $500 million pot will be used to assist councils to repair, maintain and seal local roads in regional areas.
The sealing of the road was confirmed as a pre-election promise by then Roads Minister and Member for Oxley, Melinda Pavey, and Mrs Williams.
The project will be completed within the current term of the State Government. However, there is no time frame in place for those works.
North Shore Progress Association president Kingsley Searle said residents were looking forward to the sealing of the road.
"The road deterioration is still occurring and we still have the possibility of deaths or serious accidents on that road," he said.
"Our overriding priority is to get that road sealed.
"It is vital for residents and businesses that live and work along that stretch of roadway that this work is completed sooner rather than later."
The Maria River Road is home to beef cattle, bees, native plants, nursery, alpaca farms and other rural farming activities.
"We are looking forward with great anticipation to that road being sealed," he added.
Mrs Williams said Maria River Road is long-overdue for an upgrade.
"Locals have been calling for this work to be done for many years", she said.
"The state of the road has deteriorated with many local residents having to get their vehicles repaired following damage caused by the poor condition of the road.
Mrs Pavey said the Government will assist councils with a fully funded program to help repair the road.
"Both Kempsey Shire and Port Macquarie Hastings councils have done a lot of work in recent years on the costs, benefits and design aspects of sealing Maria River Road; this will be used to help get this joint project underway and delivered in the next four years of the government."
Kempsey Shire Council's director of operations and planning, Robert Fish, said preliminary logistics planning had started on the project.
"We welcomed the commitment of funding for sealing Maria River Road, announced earlier in the year and are anticipating formalisation of the funding process in coming months," he said.
"In preparation for this significant project we have commenced preliminary logistics planning ahead of more detailed delivery partnership with Port Macquarie-Hastings Council."
A Port Macquarie-Hastings Council spokesperson said council is awaiting clarification on how to apply for the funding to undertake the project.
Stay ahead with local news by signing up for the Macleay Argus newsletter here.
