That is significant because $100 million is how much the federal government has put into the high-profile and controversial "Gateway merge" project on the Pacific Motorway.

It is also more than the Queensland government has put forward for two M1 projects; Eight Mile Plains' Gateway merge project ($210 million total) and the Mudgeeraba to Varsity Lakes six-laning project ($220 million total).

The Queensland and federal governments on Friday put the two M1 projects to private sector firms to get lower costs than were budgeted.

"We saw the final price on the Sunshine Motorway section of the Bruce Highway come in with a $180 million saving," Mr Bailey said.

"And that was only six weeks ago."

Mr Bailey said the construction market was now "very good" in Queensland, offering potential savings in big projects.

"That is why we are agreeing to get out there while the market is in good shape, to see where we can land on the final price," he said.

Market prices should be known by February 2017.

Federal Urban Infrastructure Minister Paul Fletcher would not estimate how much he thought could be saved on the two M1 projects.

"We just don't know until we test the market," Mr Fletcher said.

"Let's wait and see what we get back.

"There have been significant savings experienced in projects around the country. But I don't want to pre-judge any assumptions about what outcomes we might get here."

But when it comes to the elephant in the room – how national highways should be funded close to capital cities – both men were very polite.

It's a long time until the next federal election.

They are definitely talking about a new funding model for national highways – outside of the 80:20 or 50:50 split that mars every state and federal election.

But it's a grinding talk that is not going to be shared for a while.

Cities are going to expand. Urban centres around city CBDs are going to expand.

The model for funding highway work in metropolitan areas around cities needs to evolve.

But neither Mark Bailey nor Paul Fletcher was going to share thoughts with journalists on Friday.

Mir Fletcher said the federal government had agreed to "front load" federal funds, but he did not say it was in the federal government's 2017-18  budget.

"It means we stand ready to reach an agreement under which our money goes in earlier and the Queensland government comes in at a later stage," he said.

"But those are all details to be sorted out."

Indeed.  Mr Bailey looked straight ahead as the words were spoken.

State opposition transport spokesman Andrew Powell said Mr Bailey had behaved like a "cranky toddler" to protest not receiving an offer of 80 per cent funding for the two projects.

"When we were in government we negotiated for the best offers for Queensland," Mr Powell said.

"In some cases that was 80:20, as we saw in the Toowoomba Second Range Crossing, on parts of the Bruce Highway and on the Gateway North Upgrade," he said.

"In other cases it was 50:50,  as we saw with the Cooroy to Curra section (of the Bruce Highway). 

The first point – The background to the M1 Pacific Motorway funding debacle

Traditionally the federal government funds 80 per cent of national highway construction and the state government pays 20 per cent because they are "national" highways. But traditions are changing.

Over the past two decades that clear-cut definition has changed and in urban areas some projects, like the last section of the Ipswich Motorway, and in some of the individual sections of the Bruce Highway, they are funded 50:50 because "local traffic factors" influencing a national highway come into play.

Outside the capital cities – ie outside the "metropolitan zone" – national highways are funded 80:20.

That's the controversy in a nutshell.

The second point – the M1 from Eight Mile Plains to Varsity Lakes

There are two projects here.

The first is the $210 million "Gateway merge" at Eight Mile Plains, where 148,000 vehicles a day choke to an afternoon standstill when traffic from the Gateway Motorway "merges" with traffic on the M1.

They plan to add a bus lane and an extra lane, build a new bridge and realign Underwood Road to make it flow more smoothly.

The bus lane will run southbound from a ramp which comes from Underwood Road.

This means changes to the South East Busway, which could extend to Springwood in the future.

The Eight Mile Plains Bus Station will be shifted to the M3 further south near the Underwood Road overpass.

The second project, the five-kilometre section from Mudgeeraba to Varsity Lakes ($220 million), will be widened to six lanes, which should lift its capacity by 50 per cent.

What money have the federal and state governments already put in?

Gateway Motorway merge (total $210 million)

Federal: $105 million

Queensland: $42 million

Mudgeeraba to Varsity Lakes' six-laning project (total $220 million)

Federal: $110 million

Quensland: $44 million