Urgent call for action on Loch intersection

THE angst in the Loch community following another fatal accident at the intersection of South Gippsland Highway with Loch-Poowong Road on Wednesday is palpable, a petition calling for safety improvements there attracting over 300 signatures in the space of a day.

South Gippsland Shire Councillor Nathan Hersey and Member for Gippsland South Danny O’Brien are continuing their fight for action, both having written to the Minister for Roads and Road Safety Melissa Horne after a previous fatality at the intersection late last year.

Both received a response indicating there would be vegetation clearing at the location in mid-February and that a safety review of the intersection would be conducted by the Department of Transport and Planning.

However, no date was provided for that assessment to take place.

“I would now encourage the Department (of Transport and Planning) to expedite that assessment in light of another tragic accident, to see what more could be done to improve safety at this intersection,” Mr O’Brien said, with some vegetation clearing the only action so far.

Cr Hersey was moved by a message received from the daughter of the man who lost his life in Wednesday’s accident.

“Hopefully they’ll listen to your concerns now,” the lady said, expressing her sadness that action wasn’t taken previously to improve the safety of the intersection.

Cr Hersey is determined to ensure the impact of the fatalities on the community of Loch and surrounds is clear to those in Spring Street.

“A lot of people are touched by these two fatalities in a way that maybe doesn’t resonate in an office situation but it does in communities, so I need to try and get that message across,” he said.

He stressed that many locals witnessed Wednesday’s incident and its tragic aftermath, including first responders and other residents.

Cr Hersey said locals are frustrated by a lack of sufficient action after last year’s fatality at the intersection, despite having shared their concerns with him and Mr O’Brien, both of whom raised the need for safety improvements with the Victorian Government.

“I’ve had a phone call from a local resident who said, ‘I’m about ready to go down there with a chainsaw and cut those trees down myself’, so I’d say it’s a level of frustration that response is coming so rapidly,” he said.

Issues with the line of sight at the intersection are one of the concerns Cr Hersey has raised previously, particularly for those turning out of Loch-Poowong Road onto the South Gippsland Highway.

“Cars are on you before you realise what’s happened,” he said.

He identified the bend in the road and trees as a couple of factors that make it impossible to see rapidly approaching highway traffic in time, with the highway speed limit being 100km/h.

“My view is that a slowing of traffic at the intersection when vehicles are approaching from the side roads is the very least that can happen, as well as immediately fixing the damaged guardrail, the guide ropes and also fixing up the line markings at the intersection as well as the trees,” Cr Hersey said.

He stressed that while not all drivers would slow down when the side road triggered speed limit reduction is displayed, it would still act as a valuable warning for highway drivers approaching the intersection.

“It does get your attention and you do have to look at, ok something’s happening here, which can be the difference between life and death,” Cr Hersey said.

Caylie Holtz initiated the petition calling for action at the intersection.

“Our community is devastated by another road fatality at the Loch/Poowong intersection on South Gippsland Highway and we are calling out for changes to be made to prevent further incidents,” the petition states.

It stresses that tree trimming is not enough, the government needs to do more to better prevent further collisions and fatalities at “this very dangerous intersection”.

“Many in the community have proposed implementing a reduction of the speed limit and installation of a roundabout at this junction,” it is stated.

Council CEO Kerryn Ellis also called for action after Wednesday’s accident.

“I’ve contacted Beth Liley from the Department of Transport and Planning to seek their support and to ask them to communicate with our community,” Ms Ellis said.

“Beth Liley has advised they are taking this very seriously and will keep council in the loop.”

Cr Hersey welcomed that response but doesn’t understand why more wasn’t done after the previous fatality at the intersection, beyond cutting back trees to some extent.

“This is impacting people’s lives; they’ve lost someone who was important to them and who they loved, and I think it’s worth fighting for,” he said of the importance of continuing to campaign for safety improvements.