Roads to Nowhere

A 2019 coalition election announcement to reclassify 15,000kms of council roads and return to the state, has amounted to nothing but a broken promise according to Independent Member for Murray, Helen Dalton.

NSW Government has confirmed not a single kilometre of road has been reclassified under the Fixing Local Roads Program, putting road users right across Murray at serious risk.

Mrs Dalton said roads are deteriorating by the day, as underfunded councils struggle to try and keep up with required maintenance.

Continued wet weather and La-Nina conditions have also contributed to the demise.

“The failure of this government to transfer roads away from council ownership is a failure for all rural road users. We are approaching harvest time and we are about to see an increase of heavy vehicles on our roads which will only make the condition of our roads even worse,” Mrs Dalton said.

Mrs Dalton can’t believe the coalition made this election promise nearly four years ago and haven’t done a single thing to act on it.

“Councils are desperate to have roads taken back because they can’t afford the maintenance. They know how dangerous our rural roads are becoming and this inaction by the state government is inexcusable.”

Travelling the electorate, Mrs Dalton said it is becoming impossible to dodge the ever-increasing potholes.

The condition of our roads is so bad, some places have reduced speed limits which impacts on economic activity and tourism.

“Road users aren’t just damaging tyres, they are damaging rims and trucking companies are telling me they are losing bits off their trucks faster than they can replace the damage.”

She said investing in roads should be a high priority for government, especially considering the economic prosperity of a seat like Murray.

“Billions of dollars in agricultural product comes out of the Riverina alone and we have some of the poorest roads in the state and it just not good enough. “We need action and not empty promises.”