The proposed Shepparton bypass has been bypassed yet again.
Just a year ago, in response to a question in parliamentary question time from Federal Member for Nicholls Sam Birrell, Infrastructure Minister Catherine King reassured Greater Shepparton residents that the Federal Government was committed to seeing the project built.
“The money for the Shepparton bypass remains in the budget and we are fully committed to that project,” Ms King said.
“It remains in the budget.”
Her answer referred to the $208 million committed to the project by the former Coalition government.
However, just 12 months on, and following a review of infrastructure projects that found the previous government’s program was undeliverable, that money has gone.
“As part of responding to the findings of the review, the government has made necessary decisions to no longer provide funding at this time to some projects,” the minister said in a statement.
“This includes projects that were not realistically going to be delivered with the funding available, have made little-to-no progress over a significant amount of time, and projects that do not align with Commonwealth or state and territory priorities.
“From now on the Australian Government’s investment in infrastructure will focus on productivity, sustainability and liveability.”
Mr Birrell said the only hope for the bypass to be built is if Coalition governments are returned to power in Victoria and at a federal level.
“The Coalition committed $208 million to kick-start stage one, including a second crossing over the Goulburn River,” he said.
“The critical nature of this project was apparent during the October 2022 floods when the causeway between Shepparton and Mooroopna was cut, but Labor has categorised the project as not demonstrating merit and lacking any national strategic rationale.”
Mr Birrell held concerns for future projects in the region.
“There is no pipeline of projects for northern Victoria, a major hub for agricultural production and a key freight route,” he said.
“I am also concerned about the future of funding provided directly to local government, which Minister King is yet to detail following the review.”
State Member for Northern Victoria Wendy Lovell said the Federal Government’s decision is proof Labor governments at state and federal levels don’t care about the “safety and welfare” of the Greater Shepparton community.
“The bypass has been in the planning for over three decades and stage one of it has been the community’s priority project for several years, yet the state Labor government has failed to commit any funding and now the federal Labor government has removed the funding that was allocated by the former federal Liberal government,” she said.
“The separation of Mooroopna and other towns west of the river from Shepparton during the floods of 2022 was evidence of the desperate need for a second river crossing above flood level.”
State Member for Shepparton District Kim O’Keeffe said she’s appalled by the decision.
“This is astounding considering 25 per cent of the state’s trucks are registered in the Greater Shepparton District and we are one of the country's largest and most successful agriculture and manufacturing suppliers with both national and global success,” she said.
“I would have also thought community safety would have been merit. We have trucks constantly belting through the CBD of Shepparton and Mooroopna as well as all vehicles having to travel on a primitive unsafe road network.”
Shepparton is widely described, including by the Committee for Greater Shepparton, as the most important intersection on the freight route between Brisbane and the Port of Melbourne and City of Greater Shepparton Mayor Shane Sali described the Federal Government’s move as a “huge blow to Greater Shepparton, the state of Victoria and the nation”.
“The October 2022 floods cut the connection between the north-east and the north-west of the state for several days,” Cr Sali said.
“During this time essential workers were unable to cross the Goulburn River to work at the hospital. We had to have supplies brought in by helicopter to meet the needs of the community all because there is no second river crossing.
“It is very disappointing that the Federal Government has categorised this project as lacking merit and strategic rationale.”
Cr Sali said a bypass would have transformed the region’s freight capacity and improved safety for drivers and visitors to the region by diverting by removing a significant amount of heavy vehicle movements from the city’s streets.