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Hills, Hornsby & Hawkesbury Mayors call for more State & Federal Funding for road repairs

The three Council Mayors, Peter Gangemi – The Hills CouncilSarah McMahon – Mayor of Hawkesbury and Philip Ruddock – Mayor of Hornsby Shire Council held a press conference to campaign for more support from the State and Federal Governments to help them repair their road networks.
As explained by Dr Peter Gangemi during his speech, over the past three years, these Councils have been significantly impacted by three consecutive La Ninas, record-breaking rain and multiple flooding disasters.  All three of these events have contributed to the roads deteriorating at a faster rate than their road modelling could have ever predicted.   That’s why their residents are seeing more potholes than ever before. In fact, in 2019 they had 1680 requests for pothole and road sheeting repairs, and now in 2022 they have 5086 requests. This is phenomenal increase and shows just how much their crews and contractors are working to rebuild their roads to a standard that residents deserve.
“Our Council has already allocated more funds to road rehabilitation than ever before, but the work and the costs associated with these repairs are outside the scope of local government. That’s why we can’t do this alone – we need the support of the State and Federal Governments.” said Hills Council Mayor, Dr Peter Gangemi.
“What we are calling for is a Metropolitan Council Potholes Repair Fund – similar to the State Government’s $50 million Fixing Local Roads Pothole Repair Program which has been rolled out to provide funding to regional and rural councils to address their highest priority pothole requests.
We need this funding urgently as our local roads are fundamental for business, commerce and our way of life. That’s why I’m campaigning for this funding, so that we can get our roads back to a condition that you’ve been asking for.” Dr Gangemi concluded.
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