Abbott pledges 15 years of projects

Frustrated motorists and commuters will know by the end of the year which road, rail and other projects will go ahead as the country tackles crippling congestion.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Friday launched the first major audit of the nation's infrastructure, which showed congestion on city roads already costs the economy $13.7 billion a year and will rise to $53 billion if nothing is done.

But the report says there needs to be a serious public debate about how the projects will be paid for.

Travel times and public transport demands are expected to double in some areas, as Australia heads toward a population of 30.5 million by 2031.

Three-quarters of the growth will be in the four largest capitals: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.

Mr Abbott said Infrastructure Australia's next task was to take its audit, talk to the states and territories and come up with a 15-year plan by the end of the year.

"All Australians will be able to see what our priorities are, what they can expect and when they can expect it," he said.

The audit said governments and the private sector needed to look at more tolls, road user charges and other methods to fund what is needed.

Labor frontbencher Anthony Albanese said the federal government had squibbed its role in the most recent budget.

"All that has happened is that money has been cut from last year's budget for public transport projects and there's no additional money either for road or indeed even for rail," he said.

Treasurer Joe Hockey said the government was "doing plenty" but states had the main responsibility to "step up to the plate".

NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury said businesses were losing clients and revenue because of congestion.

"Congestion has become the new red tape and it is quite literally choking productivity to a standstill," he said.