Roads Australia is calling on governments to recommit to long-term infrastructure provision amid concerns about the ability of its member organisations to deliver current workloads during the Covid-19 crisis.
A survey of 166 RA member organisations delivering, operating and maintaining major transport infrastructure across the country found 35 per cent were experiencing staff availability issues.
A further 10 per cent of organisations reported problems with the availability of sub-contractors.
Those who nominated other “pinch points” cited:
- border and travel restrictions which had stopped the transfer of interstate and overseas staff to key projects;
- the unavailability of clients and key personnel to provide direction and sign-off on approvals;
- the loss of current and future revenue; and
- lower productivity associated with working from home
Roads Australia is also calling on governments to:
- reduce payment terms to contractors to help them maintain their cash flows and pay their employees on time; and
- provide assurances of their commitment to long-term pipelines so industry can plan and invest in capacity to support an economic recovery and deliver the next wave of infrastructure.
Posted 3 April, 2020