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Mr D. L. PAGE (Ballina) [5.48 p.m.]: Tonight I raise an issue that is very important to my electorate. It is the need for an Alstonville bypass. Alstonville is situated on the Bruxner Highway between Ballina and Lismore. The need to build a bypass at Alstonville is highlighted by the fact that at the moment up to 18,000 vehicles a day pass through the relatively small Alstonville town centre. That is a lot of vehicles for a small place like Alstonville to accommodate. As a result, there is tremendous conflict between Alstonville pedestrians and through traffic going from Ballina to Lismore or vice versa.
A number of people who live in Lismore, a regional centre, actually work at Ballina, which is closer to the beach. For many years governments have recognised the need for the Alstonville bypass. Twenty years ago the Roads and Traffic Authority [RTA] reserved a corridor for it. In about 1993 or 1994 the RTA made a commitment to go ahead and build it. In about 1995 the community consultation process commenced and route options were released for public discussion. It was then agreed that the preferred route would be the route that had originally been designated. Planning continued and an environmental impact statement was called for and subsequently completed.
To my knowledge, and to the knowledge of everyone in that area, there are no controversial elements to this bypass. No environmental issues will prevent its construction. On 18 February 1997 I made a diary note of a conversation I had had with an RTA official. He told me that the planning process would take another 18 months to two years and that the construction would take another 18 months to two years beyond that. In other words, planning would be completed by February 1999 and the construction would be completed about now. At that stage I was prepared to accept those assurances, but I am no longer prepared to do so.
There is a great deal of anger in the Alstonville community about the fact that there was no allocation of funding in yesterday's budget for the construction of this bypass. Only $300,000 was allocated for planning, which is totally unacceptable and unsatisfactory to my community. People desperately want to see the completion of the Alstonville bypass, and justifiably so. As I indicated earlier—and this varies from day to day—up to 18,000 vehicles travel through this small village, and that is dangerous for pedestrians. There is a bottleneck at Alstonville when people travel to and from work in the mornings and afternoons. Alstonville High School and Alstonville Primary School are located close to the main street, and that creates a lot of pedestrian traffic.
I call on the Government to rethink this project and to fund it as a matter of urgency. There is a budget surplus of $368 million and it is important that this project be funded, and funded now. This project, which will cost a total of $32 million, has been five or six years in the planning. In my view the Government is just stalling the planning process so it does not have to fund this project. It is totally unacceptable that we have had to endure these delays. I call on the Government to allocate the money as a matter of urgency so that work on the Alstonville bypass can proceed.
Mr GAUDRY (Newcastle—Parliamentary Secretary) [5.53 p.m.]: I was interested to hear the contribution of the honourable member for Ballina, who was sincere in his presentation of facts. The honourable member referred to funding having been allocated for the Alstonville bypass, so the Government has obviously made a commitment to it. Small towns up and down the coast have to contend with a heavy level of traffic. However, in some areas communities have elected not to have their towns bypassed, which I find quite unusual. I refer in particular to the community of Coolongolook, which elected to retain the Pacific Highway in the centre of that town.
Mr D. L. Page: That is certainly not the case in Alstonville.
Mr GAUDRY: I am aware that that is not the case in Alstonville. I recall the media controversy relating to the bypass at Moree. Federal Government funding was inadequate to construct that bypass. The former member for that area, the Hon. Wal Murray, attacked the Federal Government on that matter. We need some balance here. I commend the honourable member for Ballina for raising this issue, which I am sure he has already referred to the Minister for Transport. I will ensure that the Minister is made aware of the honourable member's contribution tonight.
Private members' statements noted.
House adjourned at 5.55 p.m. until Friday 1 June 2001 at 10.00 a.m.
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