Some of the south-west’s worst roads will be rebuilt or resurfaced under a $44-million state government funding pledge.

Roads Minister Luke Donnellan made the announcement on the side of the battered Hopkins Highway at Ellerslie on Thursday.

Under the plan, more than 240 kilometres of pavement will undergo resurfacing work on more than 40 roads across the region. Reconstruction work will be undertaken on seven south-west roads, including the Princes, Hopkins and Glenelg highways and Great Ocean Road. Work is due to start in November.

Mr Donnellan described the funding as a major commitment, but admitted there was more work to do.

“We need to keep moving faster and harder to keep up with maintenance issues in these areas,” he said. 

“We know the importance of keeping these roads in a good state because of the amount of produce that comes through this area, food, fibre and the like... that comes into the Port of Portland that’s a substantial economic driver for the whole region.

“To actually get products in and out of the port we need good roads.”

The minister, however, did not make a direct funding pledge to upgrade port routes. He launched the Greater Green Triangle Freight Action Plan in Portland on Wednesday night, which makes a case for upgrading routes around the Port of Portland, but has at this stage not confirmed money for the project.

The state government announcement is also unconnected to a $20-million federal government funding pledge made during the election campaign that relied on matching funding from the state. Mr Donnellan said negotiations on this deal were still ongoing. 

“Today was very much about dealing with basic maintenance and re-surfacing,” he said.

“I welcome the fact that there was a federal election because for 12 months before that we had tried to engage the federal government, but we couldn’t actually get anywhere. I’m grateful there are now commitments and we will work through those.”

Member for Western Victoria James Purcell said he worked closely with the state government to highlight the roads in most need of upgrades.

“As everyone knows our roads are a mess, so we actually went public and said ‘tell us what your 10 worst roads are’ and we got stacks. I drove them all and picked out what I thought were the 10 that needed the funding most,” he said.

“I presented that list in Parliament and met with Luke (Donnellan)… and the vast majority of it was funded through this announcement.

“For us it’s a great injection, somewhere around $44 million, into roads in the region. It’s a big chunk of money and will go a long way to improving the road network.”

Member for South-West Coast Roma Britnell welcomed the announcement, but said there was still plenty of work to be done.

“I have no doubt the lobbying and pressure applied by everyone in the south-west, from local governments, industry and the wider community has delivered this cash injection,” she said.

“I have been writing to the minister almost every day on behalf of my constituents and we know there have been plenty of calls made to the VicRoads hotline.”

Roads to be reconstructed are:

Roads listed to have sections resurfaced are: