Mayors from across country New South Wales have warned some within their communities will face financial burdens if an urgent plan to fix and fund flood-damaged roads is not developed.
Local Government NSW, the peak body representing councils in the state, calculates that successive floods and torrential rain have caused $2.5 billion in road damage.
Gunnedah Mayor Jamie Chaffey said the impact has been recorded across all regional, rural and remote areas.
"Roads are completely washed away. [There has been] damage to causeways, bridges, drains, ... massive damage," he said.
The issue is set to be a top agenda item at a meeting of the Country Mayors Association in Sydney on Friday.
Cr Chaffey said farmers desperate to get their crops off were using unfit roads and risking further damage.
"They need to get heavy equipment on the road network to get out to harvest now," he said.
"The additional damage could create a generational cost burden."
He said combined the neighbouring councils of Gunnedah, Moree and Narrabri expect the road repair bill to be more than $1 billion.
Councils will also consider where to source additional road repair supplies and workforce.
At a recent national road congress, councils in NSW voted to declare a state or emergency on regional roads.
Shoalhaven Councillor Patricia White said after repeated floods and heavy rain roads in the shire were in ruin.
"We have thousands and thousands of potholes," she said.
"At night-time I dread driving on the roads, people have got blown tyres and rims.
"It's not only affecting [the] public, but also emergency vehicles."
In late October, the state government said it would provide an additional $50 million to 95 regional councils available from January.
Ninety-four councils have applied for the money, but Cr White said her council's allocation would equate to about $500,000 and would not last long.
"That will cover about a week's worth of pothole repair," she said.
On the south-western fringe of Sydney, Wollondilly Council said it was facing a $140 million bill.
"That is almost three times the amount we bring in rates each year," Wollondilly Mayor Matt Gould said.
"We have over a dozen landslides in the shire, major road damage, pavement surfaces have taken an absolute beating."
Cr Gould said road crews were repairing more than 1,500 potholes a week.
"It's just the scale of the damage is going to take too long if the state government doesn't help us," he said.
"Doing heavy patching is slow, it's going to take time and it costs an awful amount of money to fix it properly."
Wollondilly Council is facing an additional bureaucratic hurdle after the state government reclassified the regional area to instead be part of Greater Sydney.
The decision means it is excluded from applying for regional road funding.
Hawkesbury and the Blue Mountains were also reclassified, the Blue Mountains Council said its road repair bill would be more than $400 million.
Road reclassification questions
In 2019 the state government promised councils they would be relieved of responsibility for 15,000 kilometres of country roads.
Shadow Regional Roads Minister Jenny Aitchison said the government had failed to deliver on that promise.
"To date not one kilometre of road has been transferred back to state government," Ms Aitchison said.
"The load is too great on councils."
Cr White said the delay in transferring roads had increased the cost burden on councils.
"Some of the roads that need total repair, rip up and replace, are on those lists waiting to find out whether they are going to be approved for transfer or not," she said.
Regional and Rural Roads Minister Sam Farraway said requests for reclassification were being assessed by an independent panel chaired by former NRMA president Wendy Machin.
In September 2021, the government received an interim report recommending 391 kilometres be transferred.
Mr Farraway said he was progressing the reclassification program and denied the delay had increased cost and damage to councils.
"Irrespective of who owns the roads, if councils have had disaster declarations, they will get disaster funding to fix those roads," he said.
Mr Farraway helped create a $312 million betterment fund with the Commonwealth for roads in the Northern Rivers and he said he would work in another deal for inland areas.
Impact at the ballot box
The councils are warning the state government it will be a major issue at the ballot box for the March 2023 election.
"I think our community has a much greater awareness that the state government is not stepping up and doing its fair share," Cr Gould said
Cr White echoed the sentiment.
"Whether they are Liberal, Labor, Green or Independent voters need to ask how are you going to fix my road and what are you going to give my local council? It's going to be a huge issue," she said.
