Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to inform the House that on 17 May this year I was delighted to announce that the Australian government has allocated $8 million towards improving the safety of Wellington Road between Clematis and Lysterfield. I must emphasise that this would not have been possible without the participation of local residents. I congratulate all the Cardinia Shire and Shire of Yarra Ranges residents who took the time to respond to the survey I conducted in 2006.

People have much more important things to do than fill out surveys, so I sincerely thank the residents who did. I was delighted, that from 4,652 surveys I sent out to Cardinia Shire residents, I received 1,508 responses—a return rate of 32 per cent. This shows just how much residents wanted action on Wellington Road. In particular, I wish to thank Bob Farr, President of the Gembrook Township Committee, Kevin Teasdale from the Emerald Village Committee and Dot Griffin from the Cockatoo Township Committee for making it known to me just how important that stretch of road is to the many people in the area who use it every day.

The improvements encompass new overtaking lanes at strategic locations along Wellington Road between Clematis and Lysterfield. This is a fantastic result for local road safety. It will significantly reduce the likelihood of serious and fatal accidents caused by dangerous overtaking or impatient drivers. Senior Sergeant Doug Bergland from Belgrave Police who attended the announcement said that it has been a terrible stretch of road for fatal and serious collisions. To confirm Senior Sergent Bergland’s comments, after the announcement I received a heartbreaking email from a woman and her two young children, who she represented, stating that tragically her husband had died in an accident on Wellington Road last year. This is precisely the type of terrible tragedy that overtaking lanes are intended to prevent.

This project represents yet another in the long line of state Labor government failures on improvements by road projects in La Trobe. Despite being flush with GST revenue, the Victorian government has failed the people of La Trobe time and time again. And, time and time again, the Howard government has had to pick up the slack. In 2004 the Howard government pledged $10 million to build the Bryn Mawr Bridge in Berwick after the Victorian state government reneged on a promise to build it.

In 2006, the Howard government again allocated $1.5 million towards roadworks at the intersection of Tivendale Road, Officer. This has been recognised as one of the most dangerous intersections in Victoria for over 15 years. Despite a public outcry, the Victorian government did not have the funds to undertake the works, something I cannot accept. Again, I congratulate all the residents of Officer who have strongly lobbied for over 20 years to have this fixed. Sadly, the state government did not always listen to their cries. This was such a dangerous intersection, considering that parents dropping their children at primary school have to make a right-hand turn across the Princes Highway to turn into Tivendale Road in Officer. I could not believe this was not a major road priority for the state government. Despite what the Labor Party would have the Australian people believe, the economy does not run on autopilot. The Howard government is only in a position to fund these projects because of its strong record of economic management.

If the state Labor government with its full coffers cannot manage the Victorian economy, what chance does federal Labor have with the $1 trillion Australian economy? This is something all Australians should remember when they vote later this year. In closing, I again congratulate local residents. I am especially pleased that those couple of minutes it took to fill out the survey turned out to be time well spent. Because of the support by residents in La Trobe, I was able to demonstrate to the Australian government just how important improving the safety of Wellington Road is to the local community, especially in Emerald, Cockatoo, Avonlea, Gembrook and beyond.