General News
22 October, 2024
State Government road maintenance blitz to fund major works on single local road
Only one stretch of road in the Central Goldfields Shire will undergo substantial repair works as part of the State Government’s $675 million regional road blitz program.
Maryborough’s Gladstone Street is the single pothole ridden section in the shire to be included in the maintenance initiative which was launched last week.
While the government has not yet released a full list of roads expected to receive minor patching and resurfacing, at this stage it is believed Gladstone Street will be the only local stretch to undergo major works.
According to the government, the selected roads were prioritised following “expert assessments and community feedback, ensuring that upgrades are focused where they’re most needed”.
This package also includes flood recovery works, with priority given to repairing rural and regional Victoria’s flood-damaged roads.
“Road maintenance is the top issue across our region and it is critical we do the work to resurface and fix potholes properly so drivers can get home safely,” Member for Ripon Martha Haylett said.
“We know how devastating floods have been for our roads and this blitz will also go a long way to ensuring our roads are stronger and more resilient.”
Funding for regional roads forms part of the larger state-wide $964 million injection, which is being touted as “the largest single-year investment in road maintenance” in Victoria’s history.
However, critics have argued that “substantially more funding” is required to fix the state’s “crumbling and dangerous road network”.
Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) president Emma Germano has urged the government to commit to long-term regional roads focussed funding.
“Anyone driving in regional Victoria knows our roads are a crumbling mess and in some areas, absolute death traps,” she said.
“We need less talking and more doing. There’s no time to waste as our roads crumble around us.
“Every day our roads remain in the state they are, it’s not only costing millions in lost productivity, people are tragically losing their lives — action speaks louder than words and we can’t afford to wait any longer.”
Ms Germano added the current review of Victoria’s Freight Strategy provides an opportunity for the Victorian Government to develop a long-term plan to maintain and improve roads.
“Our regional road network is the vital link that connects our regions to critical export markets around the world via our port and airports,” she said.
“Now is the time for the government to deliver a modern and efficient freight network. We shouldn’t have to make do with a network that puts a handbrake on our sector and we absolutely will not accept dangerous roads.”
Over the next nine months, crews will complete thousands of projects ranging from road rehabilitation and resurfacing, to patching potholes and maintaining bridges, traffic lights, signage and road infrastructure.
A final list of flood recovery projects will also be confirmed in the coming months.