News | 11 April

One hundred and twenty-five bridges and culverts in 33 different councils will receive
funded engineering assessments as part of the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator’s
(NHVR) Strategic Local Government Asset Assessment Project (SLGAAP), supported
by the Australian Government.

The bridges and culverts were selected based on whether the locations were on priority
freight routes, and would deliver potential improved access for heavy vehicles.
Through the SLGAAP, the NHVR connects engineering consultants with local
government road managers to deliver funded bridge and culvert assessments and
engineering reports.

The information supports councils to better understand their bridge or culvert’s
capability and make informed heavy vehicle access decisions.

The Australian Government has committed $20 million in total, including $4 million in
the current financial year, towards this project to assess more bridges and culverts
through to late 2024.

A full list of the bridges and culverts can be found below.
For more information on the Strategic Local Government Asset Assessment Project,
visit www.nhvr.gov.au/slgaap

Quotes attributable to Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local
Government Minister Catherine King:
“The Australian Government allocated $12 million in funding to expand the number of local
council asset assessments across Australia’s road network through to late 2024, bring our total
funding to $20 million for this initiative.”
“These assessments can deliver increased benefits for heavy vehicle operators and assist local
councils in assessing their assets’ capability.”

Quotes attributable to Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Carol
Brown:
“Through the SLGAAP, local council bridges and culverts are prioritised based on their
likelihood to deliver improved productivity and efficiency outcomes for a heavy vehicle
journey from start to finish.
“No bridge or culvert is considered in isolation. Rather, they are selected based on if an
assessment may unlock access for more classes of vehicles such as A-doubles, to
travel more exensively on Australia’s freight network.”

Quote attributable to Federal Member for Lyons Brian Mitchell:
“The information provided through this program means councils can better understand
their bridge or culvert’s capability and make informed heavy vehicle access decisions.
“Councils are also able to use this information to apply for funding for the upkeep of
their bridges or culverts.”

Quote attributable to Mayor of the Derwent Valley Michelle Dracoulis:
“Derwent Valley Council nominated the Tyenna River crossing to be assessed by the
SLGAAP project.
“The results of the assessment provided council with certainty that our asset was
suitable and safe for larger combination vehicles to access.
“This in turn provided local industry with clarity when planning their project and
operational options.”

Quotes attributable to NHVR Chief Executive Officer Sal Petroccitto:
“This latest round of SLGAAP will bring the project’s total number of assessments to
590, across 88 local councils.
“We support local governments to understand their assessment reports, apply
conditions for heavy vehicle access and publish and manage their asset data in the
NHVR Portal through a road manager toolkit with recorded webinars, training modules
and templates.”

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