Flagstaff Road Upgrade

Mr MURRAY (Davenport) (14:48): My question is directed to the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government. Can the minister please update the house on the Marshall Liberal government's infrastructure plan to build an additional lane on Flagstaff Road?

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL (Schubert—Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government, Minister for Planning) (14:49): Once again, all part of delivering a pipeline of infrastructure that helps to improve things for residents, and especially in the member for Davenport's electorate—those poor long-suffering residents of the southern suburbs there who have to figure out what time of day it is before they drive up a hill with two lanes or one lane or vice versa. We have taken the next step in delivering this key project in South Australia. What is really important about this project is that you understand what it's called.

Mr Duluk interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Waite can leave for the remainder of question time.

The honourable member for Waite having withdrawn from the chamber:

Mr Picton: Good decision.

The SPEAKER: The member for Kaurna will be following shortly. Minister.

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: I just don't think the member deserves more of the house's time. I think there is a very important thing, first up, when we are talking about Flagstaff Road and that is to realise that it's actually called Flagstaff Road and not Flagstaff Hill Road. Quite a number of bits of correspondence that I have received from members—not the member for Davenport—suggest that Flagstaff Hill Road needs an upgrade. I went and had a look in my maps to try to find out where Flagstaff Hill Road was and I couldn't find it, but I think that they are referring to Flagstaff Road. What we have done now is not only have we put out to undertake the design work—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Ministers, cease the provocation, if you can.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The minister has the call.

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —for Flagstaff Road—

The Hon. S.C. Mullighan: Some even pronounce 'Knoll' wrong.

The SPEAKER: The member for Lee is on two warnings.

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —but we are also doing it in conjunction with the Victor Harbor Road duplication, as well as the Main South Road duplication, understanding that these three projects are all within the southern area of our city, that all are road duplication projects and that there is an ability to deliver these projects concurrently in a way that maximises the use of taxpayers' dollars. We are out there in the field at the moment undertaking the work necessary.

This is a difficult project. This is a difficult project that has some significant utilities issues, especially in relation to the water that flows down Flagstaff Road from the Happy Valley Reservoir, and we need to make sure that we get that aspect right and also deal with the South Australian Power Networks' cables that also run down that road.

I think it's a bit like the north-south corridor, where it's easy to do the easy bits and you leave the hard bits to somebody else. This government is in the business of doing the hard bits and delivering the infrastructure that is key to growing our city. I think especially for those residents living in Aberfoyle Park and Happy Valley and Chandler's Hill—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr Malinauskas interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Leader!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —what they need is a government that is committed to getting on with the job of making their daily commute just that much more easy. What we will see, especially after the completion—

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for West Torrens is warned for a second and final time.

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: Once the Darlington Road project is complete, our attention can turn to Flagstaff Road to make sure that we spread out the roadworks for the poor people in the south who are having to go through the gauntlet of Darlington every single day. We will be able to get on and deliver this much-needed upgrade that is going to help improve certainty for those people who travel up and down that hill every day.

As somebody who has had to drive that road on many an occasion, I must admit that the degree of uncertainty about figuring out whether or not, going up the hill, there is going to be a car coming at you from the other way in the same lane is one thing that needs to be rectified. It's one thing that this government has put some $33 million on the table to fix and is out there in the field at the moment delivering on that commitment.