Road repairs will be coming to the Tamworth region following an allocation of nearly $6 million from the state government.
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The funding will be a relief to motorists - as anyone who's had to drive the obstacle course of craters will be happy to tell you.
"I mean the roads are a bloody mess, as you know, they're atrocious," Tamworth mayor Russell Webb said.
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To fix these "atrocious" roads, the Tamworth Regional Council applied in January for a share of the $280 million set aside for regional road repairs, following storms and flood damage in 2022.
They received $5,901,065 from that program, on top of $2 million in January (part of $20 million in emergency funding) and just over $1 million in a November round of funding for pothole repairs, for a total of $9 million.
The newly allocated money comes less than two months out from the state election, a fact Cr Webb said likely "helped us get that funding", though he also said either side of politics would've done the same.
Where the money is going
Cr Webb said the earlier funding has already been put to use on designated "disaster" areas and the additional funding would secure more major projects.
"[The funding] allows those businesses who normally wouldn't have bothered putting their hand up to do any of the work - because it might only be for a couple of weeks - they can build in their business operations the fact that they're going to have six to nine months work with the council doing this work on the roads," Cr Webb said.
As for which roads will be fixed first, a council spokesperson said the funds will be spent across Tamworth's road network "as required".
"I wouldn't even try to [name] those roads because they're so numerous, most roads will be getting some sort of work done to them," Cr Webb said.
Funding for the entire electorate
"Our councils maintain a total of more than 6,000 kilometres of roads, which is a lot to look after when you consider the damage ongoing rain events caused the network last year," Member for Tamworth Kevin Anderson said as funding deeds were sent out on February 1.
Factoring in every councils' allotments, the state government sent just under $11 million to the greater Tamworth electorate.
The Liverpool Plains Shire Council received $2,409,643 and Gunnedah Shire Council received $2,679,377 to repair its 1470km road network.
"Weather events in 2022 were disastrous across the state. The roads repair bills are enormous and we are hoping this funding will also be matched by the Federal Government," Gunnedah Shire Mayor Jamie Chaffey said.
"We need to have the ability to not only restore these roads, but improve their resilience for future weather events," Cr Chaffey said.
Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Sam Farraway said regional communities should see improvements almost immediately, reaping further economic benefits by securing supply chains across NSW.
"Our freight industry, local communities, tourists and everyone who uses our road network will start to see the immediate benefits of these road repairs, with smoother, safer journeys," Mr Farraway said.
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