QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

Ms CATHERINE KING (Ballarat—Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government) (14:41): I thank the member for Macquarie for her question but also for her incredible advocacy for her electorate, particularly for the people of the Blue Mountains, who have been affected by the closure of Victoria Pass since March. I also acknowledge the advocacy of the member for Calare, who's not in the chamber at the moment, for the thank-you note that he just sent me during question time.

I told the House we would have an update to provide very, very soon, and I'm very pleased that we can now share that update. Today I joined the member for Macquarie in Mount Victoria to announce that the Albanese government is partnering with the Minns government and will fully fund and deliver the reconstruction of the Mitchell's Causeway. Our $100 million commitment, matched by the New South Wales government, will now build a new stable and secure bridge deck that will sit above the 194-year-old Convict Bridge, affectionately known as the Mitchell's Causeway.

Effectively, we're building a bridge above the old bridge. Today we also announced that we won't just restore the two lanes on the Mitchell's Causeway; the new bridge will be better than it was before, with an additional eastbound passing lane. We've not let a minute go to waste.

Work on restoring the causeway and the original two lanes is already underway, and we'll start work on the additional lanes soon. This was very welcome news for anyone heading up into the mountains from the Central West, and this new passing lane will give cars the freedom to safely navigate around slow-moving trucks and make the climb easier for truck drivers as well.

It's been incredibly tough for residents on both sides of Victoria Pass since March, with serious defects identified, forcing its closure. From day one, we have been working very closely with the New South Wales government. We've been very clear from the start that our government would support them in funding and the delivery to fix this project.

The New South Wales government, led by Minister Aitchison, moved very quickly to assess the bridge, develop a plan to fix it and get it reopened next year. And, because of that focused priority work, we believe we will have the new road deck in place and the highway opened and reconnected by mid-2027. This $200 million commitment is a joint commitment of both state and federal levels of government, to see the causeway not only rebuilt but built back better.

This is how you work collaboratively with state governments. We were very pleased to join with them in that announcement this morning, and I want to give a shout-out to the workforce there. They have been on site since day one to get the geotech work and all of that done, and it's a great example of what communities can do together.

Again, I thank very much the communities around Victoria Pass for their patience. But also, you have some very strong advocates in this place, particularly the member for Macquarie, for her great work in making sure we're aware of what is happening for this project.