Bridging accessibility through the Shire

A PAIR of bridges in Golden Plains Shire are getting a much-needed upgrades thanks to a recent funding announcement from the Federal Government.

In late September, the Shire received news of a $1.15 million grant to enable the replacement of Slate Quarry Road Bridge at Meredith and $350,000 for Geggies Road Bridge at Rokewood.

“Council welcomes the two grants totalling $1.5 million to help replace another two old and load-limited bridges in our Shire,” said Golden Plains Shire CEO Eric Braslis.

“Following council committing 50 per cent of the funding in this year’s budget, we can now get on with delivering these two important bridge replacement projects.”

The existing bridge on Slate Quarry Road at Meredith which links the Midland Highway and Geelong-Ballan Road is currently load limited to 15 tonnes.

However, with the projected $2.3 million upgrade, the new bridge will be unrestricted, eliminating a 20-kilometre detour for heavy vehicles, and provide emergency services access to this specific route.

While the current Geggies Road bridge in Rokewood is 2.5-tonne load-limited, the new $700,000 bridge is set to be unlimited with the aim of benefiting local farming and grazing properties.

Both replacements are possible through a partnership between Golden Plains Shire and the Federal Government, and Mr Braslis said the municipality was happy to contribute half the funding.

“Home to 138 bridges, replacing and maintaining important local bridge and major culvert infrastructure is a key priority for Golden Plains Shire council,” he said.

“Council actively lobbies for government funding support in this area.

“We thank the Federal Government in partnering with council to deliver these two much-needed bridge projects”

With construction on the bridges beginning early next year, road-user should be able to utilize the new structures from mid to late 2021.