Mr PASIN (Barker) (13:42): I rise today to inform the House of the fantastic news that in Tuesday night’s budget, our government funded the construction of the Truro bypass in my electorate of Barker. The Truro bypass was identified by me as a priority project some eight years ago, and it is fantastic that this piece of nation-building infrastructure has its funding now secure. Our government has allocated $161.6 million to the project and the South Australian government has allocated the remaining $40.4 million. The Truro bypass will result in more productive traffic flow between South Australia and New South Wales. It will be a boost for South Australia’s competitiveness, particularly its agriculture sectors, and will create 555 jobs directly and indirectly in the meanwhile. It will also get the very heavy vehicle freight out of the township of Truro, making that community much safer for residents and visitors.
I’ve been working with the Truro progress association to get this project to the top of the government’s infrastructure agenda, and I’d like to thank sincerely them for pursuing this program with me. To the members of the Truro progress association and the residents of Truro, to all of them: this is a massive win that we achieved together. It will be safer, more productive and better for our nation.
