Road funds, but when?

By Jade Lawton
FUNDING for Berwick’s biggest bottleneck, Clyde Road, has been confirmed but politicians of every ilk are questioning when, why and how.
Eastern Victoria MP Edward O’Donohue has lodged a Freedom of Information (FoI) request to view an earlier study that investigated the duplication.
“It beggars belief that for $242 million the Pakenham Bypass was completed and covered around 20 kilometres while Clyde Road is costing nearly $60 million for just a single kilometre,” he said. “Not only is the duplication for only a single kilometre but the State Government has ignored the need for a grade separation and an overpass at the railway line.”
The State Government did not respond before going to press.
And while Mr O’Donohue has questioned the cost, Federal Labor candidate for La Trobe, Laura Smyth, has warned that the whole project could be axed under a Federal Coalition government.
She said the Coalition had admitted that if they won this year’s election, funding would be cancelled for some projects committed to by Labor in favour of other road and rail projects.
The local Liberal MP Jason Wood refuted the claims.
“Clyde Road should be delivered by now but Mr Rudd doesn’t have his heart in the project either,” he said.
“In last year’s budget Labor had $25 million committed to the road but now they’ve reduced it to $2.2 million. It’s just more Rudd talk.”