Call for road repairs

By Lachlan Ellis

Locals are calling on VicRoads to take action on a nearby route, with concerns the road’s state could lead to a serious accident.

Geelong-Ballan Road is one of many roads in the region that draw the ire of locals for their potholes and rough surfaces, and many people who use the road, including Simone Laurie from Beremboke, feel something needs to be done before it’s too late.

“It’s atrocious. I can’t even drive my car on it. I’ve got a car that’s low, and if I hit a pothole, it’ll just break my rims. Year after year they rip up the road for no reason at all, and replace bits of road that don’t need replacing. And now, since COVID, they’ve done nothing on those roads,” Ms Laurie told the Moorabool News.

“Just past the cemetery Geelong-bound, it’s got a million and one patchy holes in it. When you’re driving that way, you have to dodge the potholes and go over double lines all the time. If you drive all the way up to the Beremboke turnoff, there’s some massive dips, where they’ve just got signs warning people. In the dark people can’t see them, and hit those dips.”

Ms Laurie said her concerns had been sent to VicRoads, but she’d never received a response.

“I do it over the internet all the time, and it just gets ignored. You get that message that says ‘we’ve received your request and we’re looking into it’, and you never ever hear anything. For me, I live in Beremboke, and I can’t go down any of the bush roads because they’re all stuffed, so I have to go on Geelong-Ballan Road, and the conditions are bad. I’ve got trucks as well, I employ 20 people so they’re all coming and going…it’s just bad,” she said.

“It’s only a matter of time until someone gets killed on Geelong-Ballan Road, I reckon. Someone’s had to go and draw arrows where the potholes are so people don’t hit them.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Transport and Planning said Geelong-Ballan Road is inspected regularly, with crews on site every two weeks at a minimum.

“Geelong-Ballan Road is a crucial road, particularly for the freight industry – that’s why we’re delivering smoother, more reliable journeys for drivers who rely on it each day. Roads right across the Western Victoria are being rebuilt and resurfaced to ensure drivers can get to where they’re going safer and sooner,” the Department’s spokesperson said.

“What were previously considered once in a generation flood events are now commonplace, bringing record rainfall and inflicting unprecedented damage on our roads, which is why we’re now delivering road maintenance as part of a $6.6 billion, 10-year strategy, allowing us to plan long-term and future-proofing regional roads.”

Works worth a total of $6.42 million are planned for completion by the end of June across three sections of Geelong-Ballan Road, with reduced speeds and traffic management in place during that time.

More than 1,000 vehicles use the road every day, including 130 heavy vehicles.