Picton Road needs a major upgrade by 2026, according to a national body.
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Infrastructure Australia is a body that advises governments on which projects are crucial to undertake.
Its 2021 Infrastructure Priority List has brought forward the timeline for Picton Road upgrades from "medium term" (five to 10 years) to "near term" (zero to five years).
Read more: P-plater charged over Picton Road crash
"The volume of passenger and heavy vehicles on Picton Road, combined with difficult topography, is causing significant delays and safety issues on the route," the priority list stated.
"This is resulting in longer travel times and high crash rates."
The list made several recommendations for improvements, which included upgrades to intersections and adding capacity and overtaking opportunities.
In November last year, Transport and Roads Minister Andrew Constance announced $44 million in funding to investigate the duplication of Picton Road.
He said the move was driven by the high crash rates
In the five years up to March 2019, there were seven fatal crashes and 26 serious injury crashes.
According to Infrastructure Australia, this was more than double the NSW average for the number of fatal and serious crashes per kilometre for similar type roads.
Infrastructure Australia also added the Mt Ousley interchange to the Priority List for the first time, giving it a 0-5 year timeframe.
"The interchange also has a comparatively high crash rate," the Priority List stated.
"This is particularly due to an at-grade right turn across the M1, large speed differentials between light and heavy vehicles, and the current off-ramp configurations that cause significant weaving movements."
The Illawarra Business Chamber was a driving force behind the creation of the Picton Road Motorway Coalition.
"The inclusion of the Mt Ousley interchange project and the advancement of the Picton Road motorway upgrade in the updated Infrastructure Australia Priority List reflects a lot of hard work and advocacy by the Illawarra business community and our partner councils over the previous 12 months," the chamber executive director Adam Zarth said.
Meanwhile, the Priority List has downgraded the need for freight rail access to Port Kembla from near term to medium term.
Glen Humphries
I'm an award-winning senior journalist with the Illawarra Mercury and have well over two decades' worth of experience in newspapers. I cover the three local councils in the Illawarra for the Mercury, state and federal politics, as well as writing for the TV guide. If I'm not writing, I'm reading.
I'm an award-winning senior journalist with the Illawarra Mercury and have well over two decades' worth of experience in newspapers. I cover the three local councils in the Illawarra for the Mercury, state and federal politics, as well as writing for the TV guide. If I'm not writing, I'm reading.
