Decades of dust and danger: St Leonards residents fight for improved road conditions

RESIDENTS living on a gravel road in St Leonards have collectively been calling for the speed limit to be lowered and the road conditions to be improved for more than 20 years.

The group – who did not want their surnames published – say Harvey Road has been the site of multiple accidents over the years and is frequently in “terrible disrepair”.

They cite unsafe corrugations which have caused thousands of dollars of damage to their vehicles, along with ongoing issues with loose gravel and dust, as some of their main concerns.

The unsealed road is also 100km/h, a speed all the residents agree is “absurd”.

Harvey Road resident Sue has been personally trying for eight years to convince the City of Greater Geelong to lower the speed limit, however attempts to get the road conditions addressed date back to as early at 2001.

“I’m just trying to make my road safe. That’s all I’m trying to do,” she said.

“You wouldn’t believe the corrugations.

“Sometimes I can’t get into my driveway because the people going the other way, coming away from St Leonards, create so much dust, I nearly get t-boned trying to turn into my driveway.

“If I try to come out of my driveway…I can’t see the cars coming at 100km until my nose is out onto the actual road.

“It’s really terribly, terribly dangerous. I can’t stress it.”

Neighbour Blair said he has had six cars come through his fence in as many years after misjudging the road’s condition and just last year, a van tipped over outside his property.

It is believed at least one life has been lost on the road and he’s concerned it will take another death before any meaningful action is taken to improve the situation.

“Someone has to die, or be badly injured, for something to happen,” he said.

He said the gravel on the road’s surface was loose, causing cars “float” across the road, particularly smaller cars which are less equipped to handle the terrain.

Harvey Road abuts Ibbotson Road, another unsealed road which features similar conditions and also frequently receives complaints from local residents.

Although she does not live on Harvey Road, Julie Bramucci keeps horses on a nearby property and has to travel both Harvey Road and Ibbotson Road regularly.

She said the corrugations in both roads caused the engine mount in her vehicle to crack last year.

“The engine was rocking…The mechanic had never seen anything like it.

“I was lucky that the engine actually didn’t drop out of the car.

“And unfortunately, because of the corrugations, you’re actually better to go at about 70kmh to try and ride over them.

“If you go slow, [your car] just absolutely vibrates. Every time you drive the road, you just cringe and swear.”

When asked previously about the speed limit, City of Greater Geelong’s executive director of city infrastructure James Stirton said: “We don’t have any recent traffic count data for Harvey Road.”

“We will collect some traffic data to investigate the request for a speed limit reduction at this location.”