The Rudd Labor Government is delivering on its commitment to complete the duplication of the Hume Highway by 2012.

Today I joined Kay Hull, Member for Riverina, to inspect the recently opened Tumbarumba Bridge and the work progressing along the 9 kilometre Kyeamba Hill section of the Highway – the most complex part of the upgrade which is expected to be completed in late 2009.

I also took the opportunity to announce that the northbound carriageway of the Little Billabong section will open to traffic by the end of October.

The opening of this 8 kilometre section will be the next major milestone in the $800 million Hume Highway duplication project. Once the northbound carriageway is open, work will get underway on the final part of the Little Billabong section which is expected to be complete by mid 2009.

All up, work is currently underway on over 80 kilometres of the Hume Highway in southern NSW. Once complete, the upgrade will provide a safer, four-lane road for the 34,000 cars and 6,000 trucks that use the Highway everyday.

The current works on the Hume include construction of five sections of dual carriageway:

•  Sturt Highway to Tarcutta: a six kilometre stretch of highway approximately 40 kilometres south of Gundagai.


• Kyeamba Hill: a nine kilometre stretch of highway approximately 70 kilometres south of Gundagai.


• Little Billabong: an eight kilometre stretch of highway approximately 90 kilometres south of Gundagai.


• Yarra Yarra to Holbrook: a twelve kilometre stretch of highway approximately 100 kilometres south of Gundagai.


•  Woomargama to Mullengandra: a ten kilometre stretch of highway approximately 135 kilometres south of Gundagai.

In addition to these works, earlier this month I announced the preferred routes for the bypasses of Tarcutta, Holbrook and Woomargama thereby allowing planning on these final links to get underway.

These bypasses will complete the dual carriageway between the nation’s two largest cities, taking up to 2,700 trucks off the local roads of these towns and reducing the time it takes to move freight between Sydney and Melbourne.

Hume Highway –Accelerated Southern Hume Duplication Package