Still a trap
LEONGATHA North residents urge drivers to slow down on Crightons Hill.
Though works have been done to improve the road, including new signs and patchwork to the road’s surface, residents still feel drivers could do more to stay safe on the notorious bends, the scene of a number of tragic fatalities.
Leongatha North’s Chris Howard said it’s a short term fix and drivers’ old habits will begin to creep back.
“What has been done is an improvement but drivers are still going too fast,” Mr Howard said.
“It doesn’t matter where you drive, there will always be drivers who don’t stick to the speed limits and continually use their mobile phones.”
Mr Howard believed drivers will not adjust their speed until there is a camera constantly watching the road or the signs are replaced with speed limit signs with the official white background.
It’s not just car drivers who worry him and neighbour Janice Sing – the truck drivers and motorcyclists as well.
“Three weeks ago I was coming home from Leongatha and truck with a full load of gravel was coming the other way and crossing the double white lines,” Mr Howard said.
Ms Sing said the motorcyclists are also scary to come across because they zip around the bends over 100 k/ph.
Both residents said the busiest time is in the morning between 6am and 9am after work from 3.30pm until 8.30pm.
“There are so many drivers who don’t respect the speed and who don’t choose the safe option,” Mr Howard said.
“A few drivers will pull up on the side of the road, opposite double white lines, and park there. It’s very dangerous for them to get back on the road.”
Mr Howard said increased police presence would help slow the traffic down. He believed near misses would be more easily avoidable if the traffic was slow enough to adjust when mistakes happen.
“We understand the police can’t be everywhere though,” he said.
“There is an honesty system when it comes to being a driver. The signs are there for a reason.”
Residents are also concerned about the condition of the table drains.
Leongatha North local Bill Sweeney said the upgrade to the roads has been great but the table drains will cause havoc.
“Water still runs across the road one way and another way further along,” he said.
“When it does rain, the drains cause trouble. It’s a bit dangerous if you don’t know what happens. They did a good job with the signs and it was nice to have the bank taken out, but the drains need improvement.”
Gippsland South MLA Danny O’Brien said he would continue to lobby the Government to fix Crightons Hill.
“You could always do more. Last year saw more works done in the wake of the campaign. I think there’s a whole lot of work that needs to be done on South Gippsland roads,” Mr O’Brien said.
“Unfortunately, Labor’s wasteful decision to cancel East West Link means there’s less money for everything, including this.
“I’ve requested to see the VicRoads regional manager for a whole lot of these issues.”
Mr O’Brien said the intersection in Poowong was also on the list of concerns he wanted to discuss with VicRoads.
“I said to the community that if I was elected I’d do what I could.”
Tight bends: Leongatha North residents Janice Sing and Chris Howard point out how windy Crightons Hill is and urges drivers to keep to the speed limit when travelling along the dangerous road.
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Posted by Tayla Kershaw on May 26 2015. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry
