The man in charge of Melbourne’s most expensive infrastructure project is set to leave his $900,000-a-year job just a month after The Age revealed he lived in Queensland while working in the role.
The state government on Friday evening confirmed Suburban Rail Loop chief executive Frankie Carroll had “advised that he will be leaving … concluding his role as CEO”.
In a statement, SRL Minister Harriet Shing thanked Carroll for his contribution to “one of Australia’s most significant housing and infrastructure projects and for his dedication to the team”.
Last month, The Age revealed Carroll had been billing taxpayers for some travel arrangements from his residence in Queensland when “recalled to duty” here in Victoria.
SRL chief executive Frankie Carroll will step down from his role.Credit: Max Mason-Hubers
Carroll, who was on a remuneration package of between $900,000 and $909,999, had led the Allan government’s signature infrastructure project since 2021. That figure includes superannuation and accrued leave and other entitlements.
While Carroll met the cost of his regular commute himself, the documents show that taxpayers were charged when Carroll flew to Melbourne, where the rail loop authority is headquartered, to attend a conference.
In another example of travel costs billed to taxpayers, a flight from Brisbane to Melbourne is attributed to a “meeting in Canberra”, but no further detail is provided.
The released documents show that since Carroll was headhunted to run the Suburban Rail Loop Authority, he has taken more than 30 domestic flights funded by taxpayers.
The flights suggest he divides his time evenly between Victoria and Queensland and sometimes flies directly to Sydney or Canberra from Brisbane for meetings and conferences.
The value of the flights attributed to Carroll being “recalled to duty” is $3645 since 2021. Carroll’s decision to remain embedded in Brisbane has raised eyebrows internally given the importance of the rail loop as Victoria’s biggest infrastructure project.
Kevin Devlin, the director general of the Victorian Infrastructure Delivery Authority, will step in to replace Carroll as the interim chief executive from January 5 next year.
Shing said: “The Suburban Rail Loop remains on time and on budget – with thousands of construction workers busy across all sites as construction milestones continue to be achieved.”
Opposition transport spokesman Evan Mulholland said dysfunction and uncertainty “continue to plague the Suburban Rail Loop”.
“Dumping Frankie Carroll won’t fix a project that was doomed from the start,” he said.
“Frankie Carroll is the fall guy for Labor’s financial incompetence. They can cycle through as many CEOs as they like, but it doesn’t change the fact that this project is a $200 billion albatross around the neck of the Victorian economy.”
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