Kennett River residents call for restrictions on large tour buses

A PUSH to exclude large tour buses from Kennett River has gained momentum, with residents, local government and land managers backing the call amid rising safety and environmental concerns.

The Surf Coast Times first reported on the community’s concerns in 2024, and the plight of Kennett River has since attracted attention from state and national media outlets.

The Colac Otway Shire’s interim traffic measures helped ease congestion over summer, but residents say more needs to be done to protect the hamlet’s wildlife and prevent further pedestrian risks.

Kennett Community Action Group co-founder Elenore Lannigan said residents had been advocating to exclude large buses for more than a decade.

“Excluding large tour coaches will go a long way to managing carrying capacity, meaning the number of people coming at once, and it will improve safety in a high pedestrian area.

“We as a community have been advocating for this for over a decade.”

Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority (GORCAPA) has now joined the shire and residents in calling for state government action.

“We have community, council and land managers all on the same page,” group co-founder Jules Lin said.

“Now we need the support from the state government through the Department of Transport and Planning to make the decision to exclude large tour buses due to known risk.”

The shire introduced temporary traffic changes in late 2024 after locals raised concerns about increased visitor traffic, wildlife disturbance and safety issues.

The measures included formalising angled parking, removing right-hand turns from Hawdon Avenue, and installing bollards and line markings to prevent unsafe parking.

Colac Otway Shire general manager for infrastructure and environment Doug McNeill said the changes had made a noticeable difference.

“The changes are having a positive effect – cars are not parking on the roundabout, parking on the service road is more orderly, and it is generally a lot safer.”

Residents say the area has become overwhelmed with visitors, with GORCAPA counters recording 50,000 people along the riverbank in just nine months, and estimates of more than 300,000 annually to the hamlet.

Ms Lin said the township’s wildlife was under stress due to the sheer number of visitors – arriving at 7am and still coming at nightfall.

“We have an obligation to proactively preserve and protect our few remaining animals, if we are serious about sustainable tourism.”

Community members have previously documented incidents including tourists climbing trees, using drones, spotlighting koalas at night, and approaching kangaroos to feed them.

The most concerning incident relating to safety was when a child was nearly hit, in a near-miss incident described by residents as a wake-up call for better pedestrian safety.

The shire’s interim traffic safety changes will remain in place while GORCAPA develops more permanent traffic management measures under the Geelong City Deal program.