Don't abandon Hahndorf

In the wake of the Federal Government’s decision to cut funding from significant Hills projects, it is some consolation that the State Government says the Mt Barker freeway interchange upgrade is not off the table.

It’s a significant project that is desperately needed and will become more urgent as Mt Barker, Nairne and Hahndorf’s populations grow.

Adelaide Road is frequently congested and the freeway bridge is often a traffic choke point due to the absence of dedicated right turning lanes onto the freeway.

However, while the State Transport Minister’s insistence that the Mt Barker freeway interchange has merit and is part of Labor’s “unfinished business” at Mt Barker gives some reason to hope, he cannot allow Hahndorf to be abandoned.

The $200m that has now been cut was initially promised by the former Coalition Federal Government in response to Federal Member for Mayo Rebekha Sharkie’s advocacy for a two-way interchange at Verdun.

Regardless of where people sit on a Hills truck bypass, making the Verdun interchange two-way seems like an obvious move and the assertion by the Federal Government that somehow the axed projects lack merit is bewildering.

It’s hard to see how the $200m package – which included the upgrades to both interchanges and a suite of upgrades at Hahndorf – lacked merit given the region’s population growth and already overburdened road networks at Mt Barker and Hahndorf.

The State Government’s $50m contribution to the projects is still on the table.

But that is unlikely to go far to meet the needs of the region if the Federal Government doesn’t reverse its decision and invest in the Hills.

It’s now up to the State Government and local politicians to lobby the Federal Government to reinstate at least some of the funding to enable desperately needed infrastructure upgrades in the region.