PM Abbott commits $200m to Melbourne Airport freeway project

The Abbott government will contribute $200 million to finish widening Melbourne's Tullamarine Freeway, with claims travel times between the airport and the city will be cut by almost 20 minutes.

The Napthine government will contribute $50 million to the $250 million project, widening the freeway between Melrose Drive and the airport.

Construction is expected to create 200 jobs, with the project due for completion by 2018.

It follows an $850 million deal made with Transurban earlier in the year which will see the road widened between the West Gate Freeway and Melrose Drive.

Today Prime Minister Tony Abbott said "the election is a referendum on the Premier's infrastructure plan".

"Labor doesn't believe in roads, it believes in Green preferences," he said.

Premier Denis Napthine said the freeway upgrade will result in a 20 percent reduction in casualty crashes.

"This is a real revolutionary change to improve productivity and efficiency on that road and allow people to save up to 20 minutes of travel time so they can spend more time with their families and less time stuck in congestion," he said.

The Abbott government's $200 million contribution is in addition to the $3 billion committed to East West Link.

The expansion is expected to be good news for those arriving in Melbourne who plan to take the SkyBus, with bus priority for the city-bound entry ramp at Melbourne Airport.