Shire takes slight turn on Road Management Plan

THE Surf Coast Shire council has supported proposed changes to its Road Management Plan, which will be on public exhibition as of today (Thursday October 4).

The plan, adopted in June 2017, outlines how the council will meet its obligations under the Road Management Act to inspect, repair and maintain its sealed and unsealed roads.

Minor updates endorsed by the council at its September 25 meeting include refining of definitions and interpretations, and aligning of regular inspection and response timeframes in accord with road hierarchy.

At the start of 2017, the shire’s road network had about 1,062 kilometres of roads – 588 kilometres of it sealed and 474 kilometres unsealed.

Cr Heather Wellington said there was an extra $150,000 in the latest budget for roads management and that was an outcome worth noting, but she was “exhausted and distressed by the number of complaints I get about the state of our rural roads and what impact that has on people’s lives”.

“I’ve been on council for six years nearly now and one of the first things that became evident to me was the dissatisfaction amongst the rural community with the management of roads – particularly unsealed roads, but not limited to unsealed roads.”

She said she was still happy to endorse the changes and the plan.

“To me, the bigger issue is quality control about what we do around our rural roads and where they sit in the priorities of council in all the services we deliver.

“A plan is a basis for performance; it won’t deliver performance.”

The updated Road Management Plan will be on display for public submissions for 28 days online at surfcoast.vic.gov.au.