Key Australian road projects underway

In Western Australia plans are in hand for the new Perth freight link. This will run between Muchea and Fremantle, and it will start with the Roe 8 project and extend Roe Highway through to Stock Road. The route will remove some 500 trucks/day from the Leach Highway, helping cut congestion. The project will cost around US$1.3 billion (A$1.6 billion), with funding split between the Western Australia State Government and the Federal Government. The route should be complete in 2016. Also in Australia, work has been suspended on the $5.53 billion East West Link. According to the new Victorian government, the costs of the road-and-tunnel project would be recouped from tolls in 56 years, while the Citylink project in Melbourne takes only eight years.