The Federal Government's decision to commit $3.5 billion to Sydney's WestConnex project will be investigated by the auditor-general after requests from the Opposition's Anthony Albanese and non-government senators.

Key points: Audit will look at decision to award federal funds to project

Audit will look at decision to award federal funds to project Albanese accuses Government of abandoning proper process

Albanese accuses Government of abandoning proper process NSW Government says Albanese is acting to protect seat from Greens

NSW Government says Albanese is acting to protect seat from Greens Head to Australia Votes for more election coverage

The audit will consider whether the Government followed proper processes to ensure value for money before the funds were committed to the New South Wales Government.

Mr Albanese said he requested the audit in January because he believed funding was improperly awarded for the project — a 33-kilometre motorway network linking Sydney's west and south-west with the city, airport and Port Botany.

"What we've seen here is advanced payments made of taxpayers' money before there were proper assessments made over whether it represented value for money, and whether the Government's own criteria for funding infrastructure projects was being followed," Mr Albanese said.

"It's very clear that the Government abandoned proper process through Infrastructure Australia, having assessments and business cases presented before they provided funding for major infrastructure projects," he said.

In February, a Greens motion was passed by the Senate requesting the Auditor-General investigate Commonwealth funding approvals for both WestConnex and the Perth Freight Link project.

It followed an Auditor-General report on the now-defunct East West Link project in Melbourne, which made a number of adverse findings.

A letter from Acting Auditor-General Rona Mellor to Mr Albanese said the audit would "assess whether appropriate steps were taken to protect the Commonwealth's interests and obtain value for money".

It said the report was expected to be tabled in the Autumn 2017 session of Parliament.

The WestConnex project includes 33km of new motorways. ( Supplied: NSW Government )

NSW Roads Minister Duncan Gay said the project had already been reviewed by several bodies, including the state Auditor-General, Infrastructure New South Wales and Infrastructure Australia.

"This is not something we're concerned about; in fact we welcome it," Mr Gay said.

"Another independent audit that I'm sure will show what a great project it is, what great value it is, and what an asset it will be for the city."

The NSW Opposition's roads spokeswoman Jodi McKay said the state Auditor-General's report only looked at a preliminary business case for the M4 motorway widening, but the whole project needed examining.

Government says Mr Albanese's motive is securing votes

Mr Gay said Mr Albanese was trying to win votes ahead of the July federal election.

"[It] is an indication of how concerned he is about his seat in inner Sydney from the Greens," Mr Gay said.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government has also accused the Opposition of taking contradictory positions on the WestConnex project in an attempt to win over Green votes in Sydney's inner west.

While Mr Albanese said he requested the audit because the Government abandoned proper process, the federal Minister for Major Projects Paul Fletcher said Labor provided funding for the project when it was in government and Mr Albanese was trying to back away from his previous support for WestConnex.

"What we are seeing is Mr Albanese moving away from WestConnex because he's trying to secure votes from the Greens in his inner city electorate of Grayndler," Mr Fletcher said.

"He's turned his back on the needs of the people of western Sydney."

Campaigners call for funds freeze

The project is opposed by several councils, including Sydney and Leichhardt, and residents' groups such as the WestConnex Action Group.

Pauline Lockie from WestConnex Action said the federal funding should be immediately frozen.

She said then-prime minister Tony Abbott committed the money before any business case was developed.

"Australian taxpayers have every right to question why so much money has been put to risk on this project when there was so little evidence that it would work," she said.

"There's still over $2 billion of the $3.5 billion that has been committed by the Federal Government that is still to come across, and we think there should be a halt put on that immediately to protect Australian taxpayers and to stop our money being wasted."

But Mr Fletcher shrugged off calls for a funding freeze and said it was full steam ahead for the project.

"What needs to happen is that WestConnex needs to proceed as quickly as possible so we can relieve the congestion, we can improve travel times from western Sydney into the city and to the port, the airport and other key points around Sydney," Mr Fletcher said.

"That is what the Australian people expect of their government."

The Commonwealth's $3.5 billion commitment comprises $1.5 billion in direct funding, and a $2 billion concessional loan.

The WestConnex project is expected to cost $16.8 billion and is due for completion in 2023, with parts of it to open in 2017 and 2019.

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