Infrastructure betterment is repairing or building-back an asset to better withstand future natural disasters. Betterment improves resilience, generates productivity and delivers positive economic and social outcomes.

Betterment is made up of the following core values:

• Resilience: Reduce the risk of impact to an asset over its lifecycle to better withstand natural disasters, and improve the ability to respond, recover and adapt after asset disruption.
• Productivity: Maintain or improve the level of service and sustainable function that an asset provides.
• Economic: Achieve net benefits across the asset lifecycle based on the betterment value proposition and provide a return on investment.
• Social: Maintain or improve a community’s ability to function during and after a disruption to an asset.

The NSW and Australian Governments have committed $312.5 million towards the Regional Roads and Transport Recovery Package (RRTRP) to reinforce and upgrade transport networks in northern NSW.

Regional Roads and Transport Recovery Package

Program Objective

The $312.5 million RRTRP will fund the planning, development and delivery of priority local and state transport infrastructure resiliency works.

The RRTRP is applicable to Eligible Transport Infrastructure Directly Damaged or Impacted by Australian Government Reference Number (AGRN) February and March 2022 Severe Weather and Flooding across northern NSW.

Together with the Department of Regional NSW’s $200 million Infrastructure Betterment Fund, the RRTRP is the first of its kind in NSW.

How funding can be used

RRTRP funding is available for transport infrastructure resilience improvements (referred to as betterment activity). That is, resilience improvements that are in additional to the repair and reconstruction of damaged road and transport assets.

More information about the programs can be found in the RRTRP Guidelines (see the ‘Resources’ section below).

Eligibility

The RRTRP is open to the following 26 northern NSW LGAs:

Program Outcomes

The program improves the resiliency of the regional transport network to the continuing impacts of natural disasters by:

• Strengthening the regional transport network’s capacity to withstand natural disasters
• Improving the reliability of the regional transport network for regional communities during and after natural disaster events
• Enhancing the adaptability of the regional transport network during and after natural disaster events
• Improving the regional transport network’s ability to respond and recover when natural disasters do occur.

The RRTRP program was launched in October 2022 and expenditure is to be completed within two years of signing the funding deed.

How to apply

To start your application, please complete the following form:

• Regional Roads and Transport Recovery Package: Application form

Infrastructure Betterment Fund

The NSW and Australian Governments are committed to helping communities become more resilient by investing in building better infrastructure.

The Infrastructure Betterment Fund, led by the Department of Regional NSW, is a $200 million program to support the repair and rebuilding of essential public assets directly damaged by the 2019/20 NSW Bushfires, February and March 2021 Storm and Floods.

More information about the Infrastructure Betterment Fund including a list of eligible LGAs and applicants, can be found on the Regional Recovery Programs website.

RRTRP Resources

• Natural Disaster Infrastructure Betterment in NSW
• The RRTRP Guidelines

Documents and forms

 

Contact us

Email: rrtrp@transport.nsw.gov.au