THE road to riches promised by the Albury-Wodonga freeway construction has turned into a dead end of debt for one accommodation operator left with a $1200 bill.
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Alan Dearing, who provides lodging at Wyuna of Kergunyah, said a subcontractor involved in bridge work had departed in the middle of February leaving a $1200 debt after not paying rent for six weeks.
He said the man had stayed for 12 months and until Christmas had paid his bills on time.
The worker gave notice of a fortnight and that period stretched to six weeks before he left on a Sunday and said he could not pay because he had lost his wallet, Mr Dearing said.
“When we said ‘give us your mobile number’ and then he said ‘I don’t know my number’.
“That’s when we smelled a rat.”
Mr Dearing said the worker had been spoken to twice, promised to send the money but none had arrived.
He said he had heard 16 freeway workers had left an Albury hotel without paying their bills.
But the Albury-Wodonga Motel Association said it had not received any such reports.
