New campaign to ‘pressure decision-makers’: Bypass ‘agenda’ bid

By Michelle Herbison
A COMMUNITY group is spearheading a new campaign to put a Drysdale bypass on council and state government agendas.
Drysdale Clifton Springs Community Association this week distributed a letter urging residents to join the campaign.
“The Drysdale bypass will be built if sufficient public pressure is placed on the relevant decision-makers,” the letter read.
Association secretary Patrick Hughes said two council-run public consultation meetings on Drys-dale’s recently released urban design framework uncovered strong interest in development of a bypass.
“There was a lot of discussion about the bypass and loads of people put their names down and said they wanted to do something,” Mr Hughes said.
“The bypass rumbles underneath a number of things. For example, a lot of people’s concern is with traffic and parking, with a bypass it becomes less of an issue.
“The point was made that if we’re going to talk about central Drysdale we have to talk about whether or not there will be a bypass.”
The letter urged residents to engage candidates for the state seat of Bellarine because it was “likely to be a marginal seat” at the 2014 election.
Member for Bellarine Lisa Neville said the bypass would be a State Government project but required council support.
“State Government would be reluctant to prioritise a road when council has indicated higher priorities.”
Ms Neville said she wrote to Roads Minister Terry Mulder to seek advice on the bypass.
She thought traffic numbers through Drysdale were high enough to justify more research into a bypass.
Committee for Bellarine’s Tom O’Connor said he would “absolutely” push for the bypass to become a priority if elected to council.
But planning outlined in the urban design framework should come first, he said.
“We’ve got to make it a place everybody can be proud of. The ring road can complement it but it will never drive it.”
Mr O’Connor said he hoped a bypass would begin construction “within five years”.
Councillors Rod Macdonald and John Doull failed to return the Independent’s calls for comment before the paper went to press.