Region. Handing down of transport plan

The State Government is due to hand down its ambitious 25-year transport blueprint this week, outlining a priority list of at least 10 road and rail projects valued at more than $50 billion, along with controversial options such as a congestion tax.But the list of projects - believed to include the $10 billion M4 East, the $4 billion M5 tunnel duplication, the F6 extension, the F3 to Sydney Orbital, and metro networks - faces a massive funding problem. The Government's ability to borrow to fill the gap is severely restricted because of the need to finance its ever-increasing budget deficit, and several of these projects are not suitable for private sector investment, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.