$6 million road safety improvement projects for Yarra Ranges

14 Apr 2014

•  Reducing crashes and serious injuries in the Yarra Ranges
•  $3.2 million for safety improvements at Launching Place
•  Victorian Coalition Government committed to improving road safety

Assistant Treasurer Gordon Rich-Phillips and Minister for Roads Terry Mulder today announced work will soon begin on another major road safety project on the  Warburton Highway at Launching Place, as part of $6 million in road safety improvements currently underway across the Yarra Ranges.

The Victorian Coalition Government is committed to improving road safety and $3.24 million will be spent between Lester Street and Don Road to address the issue of run-off-road crashes.

This will see the installation of approximately 1.4 kilometres of wire rope safety barriers, 400 metres of guard fence and the widening of a stretch of road between Allsops Road and Lusatia Park Road.

Visiting the Yarra Ranges as part of the Victorian Coalition Government’s Regional Cabinet, Ministers Rich-Phillips and Mulder inspected the $730,000 safety improvement project at the intersection of the Warburton Highway and Leonard Road in Lilydale, with Member for Evelyn Christine Fyffe, Member for Gembrook Brad Battin and local Member for Seymour Cindy McLeish.

The Safer Road Infrastructure Program (SRIP), funded by the Transport Accident Commission (TAC), is the centrepiece of the Coalition Government’s unprecedented attack on the state’s road toll.

“To reduce the impact of road accidents, the Coalition Government has committed $1 billion over 10 years for the SRIP, targeting high-risk accident locations, installing roundabouts at intersections, installing barriers and run-off road preventions such as wider shoulders, rumble strips and wire barriers,” Mr Rich-Phillips said.

“These projects are already having a significant impact on reducing the number of crashes and serious injuries that we are seeing on Victorian roads.”

Mr Mulder said the Coalition Government has invested more than $7.8 million on making the Shire’s roads safer, with more projects in the pipeline.

“I am proud to say that there are 48 fewer serious injuries since 2010,” Mr Mulder said.

“These projects go a long way to ensuring that everyone travelling on roads within the Yarra Ranges is doing so in the safest environment possible.”

Member for Evelyn Christine Fyffe said the Warburton Highway is not only a key road for locals, but is the gateway to the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges and is used by visitors and tourists all year round.

“This project will include the construction of an exclusive right turn lane to cater for traffic wanting to turn from Warburton Highway onto Leonard Road,” Ms Fyffe said.
“Projects such as this are a great example of the specific and immediate benefits that communities are seeing through the delivery of the Safer Road Infrastructure Program.”

Local Member Cindy McLeish said that by lifting the funding for SRIP by more than 30 per cent a year from 2013-2014, hundreds of locations will get safety improvements that will have a significant impact in reducing road trauma.

“We have had successive low road tolls in Victoria, and we need to keep working hard to ensure that we stay a world leader in road safety,” Ms McLeish said.

Mr Mulder said all road users are reminded to take care over the Easter period and to drive to the conditions.

“I cannot stress strongly enough that drivers need to be aware of their responsibility on the road at all times, because speed and inattention kills,” Mr Mulder said.

There are a number of other road safety projects currently underway or recently completed in the Yarra Ranges:

• $3.24 million safety improvement project on the Warburton Highway at Launching Place;
• $1.64 million run-off-road treatment on the Maroondah Highway at Healesville;
• $700,000 improvement project at Belgrave-South; and
• $244,000 run-off-road project on the Warburton Highway and Russell Road in Seville (completed).

For more information on the Victorian Coalition Government’s 10 years Road Safety strategy, visit www.roadsafety.vic.gov.au