14 December 2016

Local Gipplanders and visitors will benefit from a safer and more reliable journey with major upgrades along the South Gippsland Highway.

Harriet Shing, Member for Eastern Victoria today announced $25 million to undertake improvement works between Koonwarra and Yarram – known as the Black Spur. Works will also be undertaken between Meeniyan and Yarram.

As part of the project, the highway will be realigned to remove a number of tight curves, as well as widening the road.

Over the past five years, there have been 13 crashes along this section of road, with a history of cars running off the road through the Black Spur.

More than 4,200 vehicles, including 800 heavy vehicles, travel through Koonwarra each day and are forced to slow down to pass safely through the sharp bends in the Black Spur section.

These works will make it safer for anyone travelling through this stretch, and cut travel times for motorists.

The upgrades will boost tourism in the region, with more than one million visitors travelling along the highway each year to see South Gippsland’s popular tourist destinations.

It is also a major link to Victoria’s rural road network and is the main route to major ports and markets for many industries including agriculture, dairy, oil and gas.

The $50 million project is joint-funded by the Victorian and Commonwealth Governments as part of the Victorian Infrastructure Package.

Quotes attributable to Member for Eastern Victoria, Harriet Shing:

“We’re upgrading sections of the South Gippsland Highway, including the notorious Black Spur, to save lives and reduce the risk of serious injuries.”

“The community has told us they want this road fixed, and we’ll do the work to make it safer and more reliable for local South Gippsland communities, tourists and the freight industry.”