The continued employment of maintenance staff and apprentices is justification enough for the Coalition’s $75 billion infrastructure program, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said this week.
Morrison and cities minister Alan Tudge visited Downer’s Auburn Maintenance Centre in Western Sydney on September 25.
Auburn is the maintenance site for Sydney Trains’ Waratah and Millennium trains. The second Waratah series has just begun its rollout, under the NSW Government’s Sydney Growth Trains contract.
Morrison said the continued activity at the Western Sydney site was a tangible example of the dividends paid when governments invest in infrastructure.
“Every time we talk about what the infrastructure investment means, the dividend of it, you can see right here,” the PM said.
“It’s apprentices, it’s people in work, it’s people in jobs.
“The long-term contracts that you see here on what is a State Government contract on the maintenance of the new trains and existing ones; that has been made possible by the increasing investment being made here by the NSW State Government following on from their asset recycling program of many years ago.”
Morrison said the Coalition’s $75 billion, ten-year plan for infrastructure would continue to pay these dividends around the country.
“Our investment in infrastructure is driving jobs, it’s driving economic opportunities, it’s leading to the investment in new facilities,” he said. “That’s what makes our economy strong, and when your economy is strong, you can do important things.
“Yesterday we were out turning the sod on Western Sydney Airport, and today here we’re looking at what’s happening in rail infrastructure and what’s happening in maintenance works and the investment being made in rail networks across the country.”
Cities, urban infrastructure and population minister Alan Tudge spoke about the range of projects on the menu as part of the infrastructure program.
“That includes huge projects such as the Western Sydney Airport, Tulla Rail down in Melbourne,” Tudge said. “But it also includes a lot of smaller congestion-busting projects around Australia as well.
“It’s projects in every single major capital city across the country, every single one designed to bust congestion, make it easier for residents to get around our major cities.
“It’s great to meet so many of the workers here who do terrific work servicing the fleet. They service 60 percent of the fleet here in Sydney and they do absolutely mighty fine work.”