Infrastructure Victoria has released a draft of Victoria’s first ever statewide, cross-sector infrastructure strategy for the next 30 years. The draft strategy, now open for consultation, takes the unprecedented step of looking at every aspect of infrastructure for the state across nine sectors covering everything from education to transport, telecommunications, energy and justice.
The independent authority has put forward 134 recommendations worth around USD 100 billion to address the current and future needs of generations of Victorians across metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria, with 70 per cent of recommendations having statewide relevance.
The draft strategy combines state-shaping major projects – such as North East Link and a new airport rail line – with policies and reforms which aim to get the most out of existing infrastructure – such as harvesting stormwater, turning vacant land into urban forests and transforming state schools into community facilities.
The document is ambitious and complex, but also provides a practical roadmap for the future, setting out next steps for action and implementation targets over 0-5, 5-10, 10-15 and 15-30 years.
“While there are 134 recommendations, three areas have been identified for priority action – increasing densities in established areas to make better use of existing infrastructure, introducing a comprehensive transport pricing regime and investing in social and affordable housing for vulnerable Victorians. These recommendations have the potential to change the social and economic fabric of Victoria, and are the most important areas for action in the short to medium term,” Chief Executive Michel Masson said.
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