Regional roads a sorry state

The condition of our regional roads remains in a sorry state.

State Liberal Member for Eildon, Cindy McLeish has again called for further action and properly fix the Melba Highway, which for too long has suffered neglect and a lack of maintenance.

Speaking in parliament Ms McLeish said, “Last October I called for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety to provide dedicated funding and resources to fix this key north–south route.”

“Whilst my call for action got some headway with some of the most treacherous sections being attended to last year, many of those fixes have since failed.

“Only recently have I seen some works recommence along the highway to fix those troublesome spots.”

The COVID-19 pandemic and long lockdowns offered an opportunity for the government to make real progress on regional road repairs when the number of vehicles on the road was significantly reduced.

Unfortunately, this opportunity was completely missed. Locals and families who drive the highway daily, freight, tourists towing caravans and those towing horse floats have had to put up with the potholes, dips, collapsing shoulders and road rubble regularly plaguing sections the Melba Highway.

Ms McLeish continues, “The city centric State Labor Government has failed my community in this regard. The government needs to make sure all the bad spots are properly addressed, not just skim over them or ignore them.”

“Whether I am in Mansfield, Yea, Dixons Creek or Yarra Glen, people on the street come up to me wanting to know why the government are ignoring the country and in particular this road, which needs to be fixed immediately,” Ms McLeish concludes.