Complaints about wire rope barriers, dangerous snow roads and funding regulations will be someone else’s problem, after a Victorian Parliamentary committee put off its inquiry until after the state election.
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The Law Reform, Road and Community Safety Committee released its report this week and chair Geoff Howard said the group did not have enough time to conduct a wide-ranging inquiry before November.
It had been designed to look into the effectiveness of VicRoads’ management of country roads.
“This will enable a comprehensive public hearing schedule to provide the appropriate platform for individuals and organisations to speak directly to a parliamentary committee,” Mr Howard said.
“It is clear that across the community there are growing concerns about the quality of Victorian roads, particularly those in rural and regional parts of the state.”
It is clear that across the community there are growing concerns about the quality of Victorian roads.
- Chair Geoff Howard
The report stated wire rope barriers were one of the key issues people had with country roads.
“Fifty-three individual submitters also commented on this issue, with some disputing evidence on their effectiveness, and others indicating that resources spent on wire rope barriers would be better allocated to road works or other protective measures,” it stated.
“Many submitters considered that it would be more effective to focus resources on maintenance activities, rather than safety measures such as wire rope barriers or reducing speed limits.”
But the TAC defended the wire rope barriers, which are still being installed on the Hume Freeway south of Wodonga.
Its submission to the inquiry stated 75 per cent of its Safe System Road Infrastructure Program funding has been directed to country roads to reflect that these roads account for 55 per cent of fatalities.
The inquiry asked if VicRoads should be dismantled and split into separate country and metropolitan roads organisations.
The committee report referenced a submission from Parklands Albury Wodonga, which suggested separate units within VicRoads focusing on metropolitan and country road issues would be a more effective use of funds.
The inquiry, and all the submissions, will be referred to a new committee after November’s state election.
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