Senator the Hon Mathias Cormann

Federal Member for Berowra, Julian Leeser MP and the Minister for Finance Mathias Cormann, today toured the NorthConnex project.

“As everyone in the local area knows, NorthConnex is a vital project for our community. I recently sent out a community survey and traffic congestion was one of the top issues raised. NorthConnex is a critical project that will vastly improve traffic congestion, travel times and ease of travel for locals,” said Mr Leeser.

“NorthConnex will help relieve congestion by taking at least 30 per cent of light vehicles and 50 per cent of heavy vehicles, or around 5,000 trucks, off Pennant Hills Road and into the tunnel. The resulting improvement in conditions for the local area will be immense.”

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann said that the NorthConnex project was a demonstration of the Federal Government’s commitment to Sydney investing in better connectivity, safer roads and an even better quality of life for the communities in the northern suburbs of Sydney.

“The Federal Government has delivered $412.3 million in funding towards NorthConnex, including the Hornsby Quarry project”, said Minister Cormann.

“I am delighted to see that this important project is on track to be delivered on time and on budget.

“NorthConnex is an example of the important role large infrastructure projects play in our economy”, said Minister Cormann. “NorthConnex will improve travel times and productivity for both commuters and freight transport. With 1,800 workers currently on site, the project has also made an important contribution to jobs growth and has invested in developing its highly skilled workforce. I congratulate the NorthConnex team on their results”.

Mr Leeser and Minister Cormann also visited the NorthConnex Training Hub, which has helped more than 1,500 workers learn new skills in areas from tunnelling and shotcreting to first aid and counselling.

“NorthConnex has proved itself to be a leading infrastructure project in many ways, including in the training of its workers,” said Mr Leeser. “More than 250 apprentices have been recruited and trained through the NorthConnex Training Hub in the past year, building their skills and employment prospects.’