Work on Medlow Bath section of Great Western Highway upgrade project due to start as soon as March

Member for Bathurst and Deputy Premier Paul Toole announced on Wednesday morning that the contract for one section of the upgrade has been awarded and "major work" is due to start as soon as March.

Abergeldie Complex Infrastructure - which also has the contract to build a new bridge at Manildra - has been awarded the contract for the work at Medlow Bath.

The NSW Government says the 1.2-kilometre section of the highway through Medlow Bath village will be widened to four lanes with new dedicated right turning lanes and a signalised intersection will be built at Bellevue Crescent (at the Katoomba end of the village), including a new left turning bay, and a new pedestrian bridge.

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It is only a small section, though, of what is planned to be a full duplication of the highway from Katoomba to Lithgow.

The overall project was thrown into doubt in late October when federal funding for it was delayed in the Albanese Government's first budget.

More than $2 billion had been committed to the east and west sections of the highway duplication in the federal Coalition's May 2021 budget, but there had been uncertainty, in the lead-up to the late 2022 federal budget, about whether the commitment would be honoured by new Treasurer Jim Chalmers.

"The Federal Government claim to be committed to this upgrade but actions speak louder than words. By putting funding on hold, they've effectively put this project into 'go slow mode', condemning those travelling through the mountains to years more of sitting in traffic," Mr Toole said at the time of the release of the federal budget.

In a doorstop interview in the lead-up to the federal budget, new Infrastructure Minister Catherine King had foreshadowed changes to the Federal Government's funding of big infrastructure projects in the country.

She said the Albanese Government had tried to make sure "the pipeline of infrastructure investment" lined up with "the capacity to actually deliver it".

"What we saw from the previous government was, constantly, this sort of fanfare about an announcement, but the reality is the delivery is taking time," she said.

The NSW Government has also been seeking separate funding from the Federal Government for the highway upgrade's central section, a tunnel from Little Hartley to Blackheath.

In regards to Wednesday morning's announcement about the Medlow Bath project, Mr Toole said it would mark the first section of major work on the Great Western Highway upgrade between Lithgow and Katoomba.

"The Great Western Highway upgrade is fast becoming a reality - major work is due to start as soon as March on this project, which will be life-changing for the thousands of people that use the road every day," Mr Toole said.

"The NSW Liberal and Nationals Government has worked incredibly hard to ensure this transformative project happens - because we know the difference it will make from the Blue Mountains and beyond."

Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Sam Farraway said the NSW Coalition was pushing ahead with the project because there was a real fear a Chris Minns Labor Government would put it on the chopping block.

"We saw what happened in the federal budget - funding was deferred to the outer years, a clear sign Labor intends to punt the project to Never-Neverland," Mr Farraway said.

"NSW Labor left us with a $30 billion infrastructure backlog bill and in the last 12 years we've worked hard to build legacy infrastructure projects that will make a huge difference to the lives of people across our state now and into the future."

The NSW Government says it will also invite community feedback on the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Blackheath to Little Hartley tunnel from next month.

The Medlow Bath Action Group has previously said that the highway duplication through its village "will turn the town centre into a five-lane freight corridor wedged between the Hydro Majestic Hotel and the train station, both heritage listed".

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