Flood Damage Sparks Call for Road Funding Shake-Up

Regional roads need to be upgraded, maintained better and have funding refocused to help the nation deal with natural disasters such as major flooding. They were some of the findings of a parliamentary inquiry that recommended the government review financial assistance grants for road funding and maintenance, following widespread flooding in 2022. The committee’s final report made 26 recommendations, which included better consultation with local councils on priorities for road upgrades. The committee’s chair, Labor MP Luke Gosling, said damage to many regional roads at the height of flood disasters had a significant flow-on effect to communities. “Communities were isolated and displaced, some for weeks and months,” he said....