Construction on the game-changing Great Western Highway upgrade between Katoomba and Lithgow is on track to start next year, with the Australian and New South Wales Governments now committing funding towards congestion-busting improvements to the journey over the Blue Mountains.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Michael McCormack said the Australian Government is turbocharging the Great Western Highway Upgrade with a $2.03 billion funding contribution, announced in the 2021-22 Budget, towards the upgrade of the East and West sections of this vital corridor.
“The Australian Government is backing in the plan to transform the Great Western Highway, because we know what a difference this landmark project will make each and every day to communities in the Blue Mountains and west of the Divide,” the Deputy Prime Minister said.
“This project will end the grid-lock and deliver safer, more reliable journeys along the highway.”
NSW Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Paul Toole said the upgrade of the East and West sections is already taking shape, with the release of designs for the Cox’s River Road intersection and the Medlow Bath upgrade over the next month bringing the project one step closer to construction.
“This is the last major highway out of Sydney that’s not dual-carriageway, and that’s not good enough for the thousands of motorists from Sydney, the Blue Mountains and the Central West who use it daily,” Mr Toole said.
“The NSW Government has put $2.5 billion on the table to transform journeys along the Great Western Highway – and with the Australian Government’s $2 billion funding boost for the East and West sections, a project that has been put in the ‘too hard’ basket for far too long is fast coming to life and will see shovels in the ground at the end of next year.
“The NSW Government is also pushing ahead with work on the Central section including investigations into building Australia’s longest road tunnel from Blackheath to Little Hartley, cutting out the Victoria Pass and Blackheath gridlocks during peak hours.”
For more information about the upgrade visit https://roads-waterways.transport.nsw.gov.au/projects/great-western-highway/katoomba-to-lithgow/index.html.
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