Anketell Road Upgrade: Contractors Invited to Bid on $1.1bn Stage 1, Construction From 2028
Anketell Road upgrade EOI is open for the $1.1bn Stage 1 freight corridor in Perth's south. Contract late 2027, build from 2028. 37 Perth trade ads live.
Contractors can now bid to deliver the first stage of the $1.1 billion Anketell Road upgrade in Perth's south, after the WA and federal governments opened expressions of interest on 2 November 2026. Road construction is not due to start until 2028, so the jobs are two years away.
What is the Anketell Road upgrade EOI?
The expressions of interest (EOI) process is the first step in choosing who builds the road. The 2 November joint statement from Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King and WA Transport Minister Rita Saffioti says it will identify experienced proponents to progress to the next stage of procurement. An alliance contract is expected to be awarded by late 2027.
Main Roads WA describes the EOI as open for the Leath Road to Abercrombie Road section. According to Infrastructure Partnerships Australia's project pipeline listing, the EOI opened in October 2026 and closes on 1 December 2026, and covers design and construction under an alliance contract with a two-stage evaluation.
What will Stage 1 build?
Stage 1 turns a stretch of Anketell Road into a four-lane dual carriageway and replaces the Rockingham Road intersection with a grade-separated interchange. The statement also lists upgrades to Rockingham Road and Beard Street, changes to local roads and accesses, new shared paths and space for a future freight rail corridor to an on-dock rail terminal.
Main Roads says Beard Street, now two lanes, will be widened to four lanes with a rebuilt intersection at Rockingham Road. The road will also extend directly to Leath Road and the Westport precinct. A second stage, from Abercrombie Road to Kwinana Freeway, is still in planning and development.
The purpose is freight. The governments say the upgrade will shift heavy vehicles away from residential streets and serve the future Westport container terminal, the Kwinana Bulk Terminal redevelopment and the planned Defence precinct in Henderson. Ms King called it "a huge investment in future supply chains for Western Australia".
Who pays for the Anketell Road upgrade?
The federal government is contributing $552 million through its budget, and WA is matching it, for a total of $1.1 billion. That funding was announced on 29 April 2026 by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Premier Roger Cook. The same statement committed a further $117.9 million in the WA Budget to the Westport program, including $24 million for land acquisitions, and noted a separate $350 million federal commitment to upgrade the Kwinana Freeway.
When will construction jobs appear?
Not before 2027. Main Roads' project page says major utility relocations for Stage 1 are scheduled to begin in 2027, with road construction expected to start in 2028. The environmental impact assessment is due to finish in 2027. Design and planning roles inside the winning alliance will come first, once the contract is awarded in late 2027.
Neither statement gives a construction workforce figure. Ms Saffioti said the upgrades would support local businesses while "generating quality jobs for Western Australians", and the April statement spoke of "a pipeline of jobs". Those are promises, not counts. We will report a number when Main Roads or the alliance publishes one.
What it means for Perth job seekers
The nearest comparable work today is in civil, trades and heavy-vehicle roles, and direct hiring in those fields across Perth is thin. On 7 November 2026, Jobs In Perth listed 37 live direct ads for trade and construction jobs in Perth. Of the 36 newest, 20 were FIFO roles, 15 came from Mineral Resources and 4 from Fortescue. Just 2 quoted an annual salary, with a median midpoint of about $110,000.
| Hub (Perth, direct ads) | Live ads 7 Nov | Most active employer | Pay disclosed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trade and construction | 37 | Mineral Resources (15 of 36 newest) | 2 ads; median midpoint about $110,000 |
| Labouring | 7 | City of Joondalup (2) | 2 ads, both $73,145 a year |
| Driver | 12 | KTrans (5) | None quoted annual pay; one hourly ad at $30 to $35 |
| Engineering | 22 | Mineral Resources and Curtin University (4 each) | 5 ads; median midpoint about $131,000 |
Only two civil contractors appeared among the 36 newest trade ads, with 2 ads from Wormall Civil Group and 2 from Tim Davies Landscaping for commercial construction. Across all of WA the hub held 48 live direct ads, so Perth accounts for most of them. The 7 labouring ads included a trades assistant at KTrans in Welshpool and a general labourer in the Perth CBD.
Closer to the project, Rockingham had 22 live direct ads on 7 November, but 9 came from South Metropolitan Health Service and none were civil construction roles. For now, the better guide to local pay is our truck driver salary page, since the MC driver ads from KTrans for bulk and container work are the closest match to port-corridor freight.
We covered the neighbouring Kwinana Bulk Jetty EOI earlier today. Together the two processes mark the start of a long procurement run on the Western Trade Coast, with construction hiring unlikely before 2028.
How we reported this
- EOI details, Stage 1 scope, the late-2027 alliance contract target and all quotes come from the WA Government joint media statement of 2 November 2026.
- The $1.1 billion total, the $552 million federal share, the $117.9 million Westport funding and the $350 million Kwinana Freeway commitment come from the WA Government joint media statement of 29 April 2026.
- The 2027 utility relocation and 2028 construction dates, the Beard Street widening and the Stage 2 status come from the Main Roads WA project page, viewed 7 November 2026.
- The October 2026 opening and 1 December 2026 closing dates for the EOI come from Infrastructure Partnerships Australia's project pipeline listing, viewed 7 November 2026.
- Jobs In Perth figures are live direct-from-employer ads observed on 7 November 2026. Agency and aggregator ads are excluded. These are advertised vacancies, not people employed.
- Cover image: AI-generated illustration, not a photo of the event.
Sources
- WA Government: Joint media statement, Procurement underway for major Anketell Road upgrades (2 November 2026)
- WA Government: Joint media statement, Delivering $1.1 billion to strengthen supply chains and boost productivity in Western Australia (29 April 2026)
- Main Roads Western Australia: Anketell Road Upgrade project page (viewed 7 November 2026)
- Infrastructure Partnerships Australia: Anketell Road Upgrade Stage One pipeline listing (viewed 7 November 2026)
About this reporting
Read the Jobs In Perth editorial policy, or browse current Perth jobs.