At present, Melbourne leads the country in public infrastructure construction, with about 30% of its active cranes allocated to government-funded projects. These include major road, rail and public housing developments. While this investment has kept the construction sector busy, it highlights a heavy reliance on one-off initiatives that lack long-term continuity.
Central to this activity is Victoria’s $26 billion North East Link road project, which uses 46 cranes. In total, Melbourne has 199 cranes operating, based on third quarter data from RLB’s Crane Index. By comparison, Sydney has 370 cranes and Brisbane has 73, though fewer are tied to public projects in those cities. Only 8% of Sydney’s cranes and 14% of Brisbane's are publicly funded, indicating a more even mix between public and private developments.
This reliance on government support makes Melbourne more exposed once major works are finished. Without a strong increase in private sector construction, analysts warn of a potential downturn that could affect employment and stall economic growth. High building costs also raise concerns, as they may deter private investors from launching new commercial projects.
Across the country, some sectors continue to grow. Data centre developments are leading this trend, with 32 cranes currently in use nationwide. These projects are expanding to meet rising demand for digital infrastructure, and Australia’s data centre market is expected to grow by 50% in value from $30 billion to $46 billion over the next four years. One Melbourne data centre site is now the largest single crane location in Australia, which may signal future growth areas for the industry.
New South Wales still holds the highest share of cranes nationally, with around 49% of the total driven by major builds such as the Western Sydney Airport and Harbourside projects. Victoria follows with close to 24%, and Southeast Queensland remains on the rise as the region prepares for the 2032 Olympic Games.
If private sector investment does not increase soon, Melbourne could face a sharp decline in construction activity once its government-funded projects are completed.
