Almost Half of State's Roads in Poor Condition, Reveals Audit
Nearly half of Victoria’s state roads were rated poor or very poor, and the auditor-general said maintenance funding is not keeping pace with damage.
- On Wednesday, the Victorian Auditor-General released a report finding nearly half of the state's 23,000 kilometres of managed roads are in poor or very poor condition, with deterioration significantly outpacing repair efforts.
- The Department of Transport and Planning's maintenance funding proved 'insufficient to maintain or improve the condition of state roads,' forcing a shift toward reactive, safety-critical repairs rather than preventative maintenance.
- About 48 per cent of state roads were in poor condition in 2024, compared to 39 per cent in 2021, with the Loddon Mallee region recording the highest proportion of state roads receiving this rating.
- Premier Ben Carroll recently committed an additional $352 million to repair 500,000 potholes this year, bringing total funding to $1.39 billion including the $1.04 billion allocated in the budget.
- Opposition figure Danny O'Brien criticized the Labor government's road maintenance record, promising the Coalition would reinstate the $288 million Country Roads and Bridges Program if it wins the November election.
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12 Articles
Almost half of state's roads in poor condition, reveals audit
Nats MP Anne Webster said country communities have been left dodging dangerous potholes and fixing tyres and rims and axels. Image: Anne Webster Almost half of Victoria’s state roads are now in poor or very poor condition, with a damning audit warning the maintenance backlog is continuing to grow rapidly. The Victorian Auditor-General’s Office report, tabled in Parliament this week, found the Department of Transport and Planning was increasingly…
Sydney Morning Herald
Almost half of Victoria’s roads in poor condition, as decline outpaces repairs
A new report has found that government-managed roads across the state are deteriorating faster than they’re being fixed, as parties scramble for solutions ahead of the election.
Road conditions in Victoria have fueled growing public discontent and become a central issue in the November election, prompting both the Labor Party and the Coalition to announce multiple funding commitments. (Michael Dodge/Getty Images)
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