And yet in this age of decision (or indecision) by committee, by drawn-out investigation, it seems the clear risks are being foolishly ignored.

Just about every car, truck, motorcycle that travels the Sydney to Melbourne corridor goes under it, yet the Melrose Drive crossing over the Hume Freeway still cannot get the attention of the Victorian government.

Benambra's Liberal MP, Bill Tilley, knows that only too well.

Deeply concerned at the dangers posed by the all-too-low "safety" railing on the bridge, he has tried time and time again to get action.

He is spurred-on by all the possible scenarios.

As he says, there's the risk created for a passing pedestrians falling over the hip-height barrier and on to the freeway 12 metres below, or for a cyclist who is not necessarily paying due attention.

MORE OPINION

But even more so, he is stirred by how easily the bridge can be used by those with suicidal thoughts.

The cost of erecting barriers, really, is minuscule within this context of lives or even simply one life taken.

It might be a million dollars, maybe a couple or even quite a bit less, but the price tag is hardly relevant within this context.

Just think about the last time you took Melbourne's Tullamarine Freeway at any time over the past few years, even decades.

MORE LOCAL NEWS:

And then think about when you might have been able to travel along it, or the nearby Calder Freeway and Western Ring Road, without there being substantial road works under way.

Out of the hundreds of millions, or more like billions, of dollars that continue to be spent on a never-ending cycle, surely there must be room for the government - and what Mr Tilley is right to call-out as its city-centric focus - to make haste and get rid of this death trap on our doorstep.

The government must respond and it must act for it has the power to make it happen, just as it must shoulder the blame for every life lost while it takes the approach of failing to act.