The funding, to be rolled out over four years, would target one million potholes and boost routine maintenance work such as grass slashing, graffiti removal and drain clearance across the state.
The commitment is part of the Coalition’s ‘fair share guarantee’, which promises investment in regional Victoria in proportion with population.
The Coalition said a stand-alone division, Better Roads Victoria, would be established within the Department of Transport and Planning to rebuild technical and engineering expertise.
The Victorian Farmers Federation welcomed the plan to establish a dedicated division, though president Ryan Milgate stressed the $5 billion must not be bogged down in red tape and layers of middle management.
He noted the funding still fell short of what the VFF and six other regional government, freight and transport groups had jointly called for — an additional $2 billion over four years for regional Victoria’s roads.
“This commitment is a significant milestone in the advocacy of the VFF and our regional partners, but it still falls short of the investment needed to properly rebuild Victoria’s crumbling road network,“ Mr Milgate said.
Rural Councils Victoria deputy chair Kate Makin echoed those concerns, saying it remained unclear how much of the pledge would be directed to rural and regional Victoria, or allocated directly to councils for repairs.
However, she said it was a step in the right direction.
Cr Makin said RCV would be seeking more details on the package.
“How much will be going to metropolitan Melbourne, and how much will be going to country roads specifically?” she said.
“We want to make sure rural Victoria gets its fair share of this funding package.”
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