Outback Way is a 2,720-kilometre iconic route from Laverton in Western Australia, to Winton in Queensland via Alice Springs often referred to as 'Australia's Longest Shortcut'. Approximately half of the route remains 'unsealed', including 736 kilometres in Western Australia.
The road provides access to the remote Aboriginal communities of Cosmo Newberry, Warburton, Mantanaru, Wanarn and Warakurna, and will facilitate regional development in the north-eastern Goldfields and provide a third strategic sealed access to the east when fully upgraded.
The Outback Way project has a focus on providing opportunities for local and Aboriginal people and businesses. We are committed to enhancing the wellbeing of Aboriginal people through increased employment and business opportunities and as seen throughout this report we have been proactively changing our policies, processes and working arrangements to ensure we make a difference within our industry.
In December 2019, we formed the Wongutha Way Alliance with CareyMC and Central Earthmoving with the Alliance completing a 40-kilometre section near Laverton in October 2021. Most local Aboriginal people who worked on the project, have since been redeployed on nearby mining projects to provide continuous employment.
The Outback Highway Development Council Inc. was formed in 1998 by local governments along the route who have continuously lobbied the Commonwealth, territory and state governments to seal the road. In 2022, a Commonwealth budget announcement committed $400 million, plus a $100 million co-contribution from our state government, towards sealing the remaining 736 kilometres in Western Australia by 2030.
The first 40-kilometre section, completed in October 2021, achieved 40 per cent Aboriginal employment, which has seen an injection of trained workers in the region able to gain longer term employment through mining operations starting up in the area, local government work and the next stages of the project.
The project has enabled notable social and economic gains:
- 27 per cent of the project funds were used to engage Aboriginal businesses
- Substantial reduction in substance abuse issues
- 'Growth experience' for both employees and Aboriginal workers in the region - including establishing a road construction school which is now operating in Laverton
- Local internal and external stakeholders worked more closely together
- Strong, mutually beneficial relationships developed between local Aboriginal Traditional Owners and the wider community.
For more information on this project visit our website.