Roads must be improved in 2025

As the dire condition of Victoria’s road network continue to decline even further, The Nationals’ Member for Euroa, Annabelle Cleeland, has called on the government to re-assess the amount they are spending on road resurfacing and rehabilitation.

State budget papers in 2024 indicated the area of roads subject to resurfacing or rehabilitation had fallen from nine million square metres two years ago to just three million this financial year.

Alarmingly, the roads maintenance budget was also 16 per cent less now than it was in 2020 despite the significant number of concerns raised about the condition of roads across the state.

Ms Cleeland said Labor had failed to effectively maintain the regional road network, much to the concern of people in her electorate.

“Every week I am contacted by people in our community who have grave concerns about roads in our region,” Ms Cleeland said.

“It’s getting to the point where it would be easier to list which roads haven’t been mentioned.

“Despite these concerns, Labor has consistently decreased their road maintenance budget 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.”

The Euroa electorate 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.

Ms Cleeland said the new year needed to signal a new approach to road maintenance by this government.

“Funding to maintain and rehabilitate our roads can not decline any further,” Ms Cleeland said.

“I hope to see this matter re-addressed in 2025 so that our drivers can safely and comfortably travel on our regional roads.”