I need K1.1 billion to fix all roads: Polye

TRANSPORT and Civil Aviation M+inister Don Polye said the Government will need up to K1.1 billion to carry out road maintenance for the whole country.
The minister said this in response to queries by Markham MP Koni Iguan during Parliament session last Friday regarding the status of the K25 million funding allocation for maintenance on Lae roads and also in response to a series of questions from Southern Highlands Governor Anderson Agiru.
Mr Polye said the K30 million allocated by the Government for routine maintenance on roads in the country was not enough and that they needed up to K1.1 billion to address the collapse of bridges and roads
due to floods and landslides.
He said the Government had also engaged Asian Development Bank to oversee upgrading road projects but more help was needed.
“The scope of carrying out repairs and maintenance and on designing road networks in PNG is huge and would cost up to about K16 million to K20 million in a year,” Mr Polye said.
Mr Agiru said funding was needed to upgrade the deteriorating state of the Highlands Highway and also to reroute some troublesome spots.
The minister said addressing road problems in the country was very challenging and that PNG did not have the capacity to design a new highway.
“AusAID transport support sector programme was engaged to do a feasibility study two years ago on road networks and come up with findings under the Government of PNG and Australia bilateral relationship but I am still waiting to receive reports of the project,” he said.
He said he would present the findings once the report was received.