The Allan Labor Government has announced yet another cut to the road maintenance budget despite the dire condition of roads right across the state.
Budget papers also highlighted massive shortcomings when it came to reaching road repair targets in the past year – with Labor achieving just 566,000 square-metres of their 1,033,000 square-metre target.
This year’s target has been dramatically reduced to just 70,000 square-metres.
The number of lives lost on Victorian roads has already climbed to 118 this year, with an 11 per cent increase in fatal accidents in rural and regional areas – a sobering reminder of the urgent need for safer, well-maintained roads.
In the weeks leading up to this year’s Victorian State Budget, The Nationals’ Member for Euroa, Annabelle Cleeland, said Labor had to invest more into fixing roads across the state.
“We need true investment in fixing our roads and an increase in preventative maintenance,” Ms Cleeland said.
“Every week I am contacted by people in our community who have grave concerns about roads in our region.
“Despite these concerns, Labor has decreased their road maintenance budget once again while being happy to blame the potholes and crumbling roadsides on bad weather.”
Ms Cleeland said the impact of weather events on roads in the region could be mitigated by properly funding road resurfacing and rehabilitation projects.
“Re-sealing protects the road network against water penetration that causes potholes and damaged roads,” Ms Cleeland said.
“By not doing this essential preventative maintenance, this government is creating a ticking time bomb that will rear its head sooner rather than later.
“The ineffective patch-up work they are doing now fails to withstand the slightest resistance and is contributing to the poor state of our roads.”
Labor’s own data showed that 91 per cent of roads surveyed across the state were in poor or very poor condition.
The Euroa electorate also featured prominently in surveys last year that pinpointed some of the state’s worst roads.
The RACV My Country Road Survey had the Goulburn Valley Highway (A39) from Nagambie to Shepparton as the fourth most mentioned road in the entire state when it came to safety concerns such as potholes, road condition, and intersection safety.
The Kilmore-Lancefield Road (C324) also received multiple complaints and was ranked 13th, with respondents mentioning potholes, limited overtaking opportunities, the poor road condition, and poor guide posts, reflectors, signage, and line markings.