The ACT government is lodging an insurance claim to recoup some of the costs incurred by the closure of Parkes Way following Tuesday's truck crash, ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr has confirmed.
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The government is in the process of putting a price tag on the debacle in which an excavator mounted on a semi trailer ripped 60 metres of asbestos tiles from the Acton Tunnel's ceiling, shutting down westbound lanes of traffic for more than 50 hours.
"The response involved multiple agencies and contractors and there is still work to be done. This is a complex and time consuming process so it is too early to speculate about what final cost might be," Mr Barr said.
"There will certainly have been a cost in lost time and productivity for Canberrans – and the inconvenience of being forced to spend more time in the car and less time with their families. So I thank the people of Canberra for their patience."
Mr Barr said the chaos caused by the closure of Parkes Way demonstrated Canberrans "over-reliance" on cars.
"It certainly highlights the significance of Parkes Way as the major east-west arterial route in our city's centre but also demonstrates our city's over-reliance on roads and motor vehicles," he said.
"It is important that we diversify transport options in Canberra so we are not as reliant on our cars at times like these [and] demonstrates the need to invest in transport, particularly in public transport, to ensure that one accident doesn't bring the whole CBD road network into gridlock."
It could be a while before any claims are finalised – trucking company Charman Earthmoving and Heavy Haulage maintains it did not require a permit for the ill-fated trip.
Penalties are yet to be issued over the incident, with WorkSafe ACT commissioner Mark McCabe saying the results of an investigation could be weeks or even months away.
