Rural roads must improve to support agri-businesses and communities: Coulton
21-October-2010
Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton has endorsed the Australian Rural Road Group’s (ARRG) push for a nationally unified asset management system, which he hopes will result in drastic improvements to rural roads.
Mr Coulton is adamant that with the nation’s dependency on agriculture, regional roads must be at an acceptable standard to ensure those in agri-businesses are able to meet with demands.
“As the face of agriculture has changed over time, the funding for rural roads has not kept pace,” Mr Coulton said.
“In my electorate I have agricultural businesses that are generating produce worth millions of dollars.
“They are expected to meet contracts, with grain and livestock, on roads that were built in the time of Cobb and Co. and have not improved much since.”
Mr Coulton gives the example of Greg Hohn, of North Star, who is still carting last year’s grain harvest, despite the fact stripping will start in two weeks time for this year’s crop.
“Two weeks out from this year’s grain harvest, he is still trying to deliver last year’s grain,” he said.
“He has got contracts to meet but he has been unable to shift much grain for the last couple of months because of wet weather.
“This is causing enormous financial hardship for him, and he is just one example of what is happening right across the country.”
Mr Coulton also raises the impact rural roads have on other members of the community.
“As well as getting produce to market, parents need to get their children to school,” he said.
“A lot of people work off farm as well and they need to get to their place of employment or into town.”
The ARRG will head to Canberra next week to meet with Roads Minister Anthony Albanese, Regional Development Minister Simon Crean and Leader of The Nationals Warren Truss, which Mr Coulton hopes will lead to a positive outcome for regional Australia.
“These meetings will start the ball rolling to finding a clear and definite method to tackle the problem of the gross under funding of local roads and the severe productivity brake that this is putting on the development of regional Australia,” he said.