The State Government must “immediately” fund repairs to the Great Ocean Road as landslips threaten to undermine it after recent flooding, parliament has heard.
“There have been 80 above the road but, more importantly, 40 below the road, which is causing considerable instability in the road foundation,” Western Victoria MP Simon Ramsay said in the Upper House on Tuesday.
“There have even been nets put on some of the cliff faces, which proved useful in the recent rainfall event, but, unfortunately, there is a lot that remains unprotected without the netting to hold it in place.”
Mr Ramsay said the Federal Government had made several contributions to the road but Victoria was yet to allocate additional funding.
“The previous coalition State Government joined the Federal Government to each commit $25 million for upgrades to the Great Ocean Road but we’ve seen the road degrade over that time despite the allocated funding,” he said.
“Certainly, the Great Ocean Road (tourism body) has indicated a long-term investment program for the Great Ocean Road and its infrastructure but right now the urgency is for the State Government to commit significant funding to help stabilise the popular tourist road, given the recent heavy rainfall event.
“I call on the Minister for Roads, Luke Donnellan, to immediately provide additional funding for the stabilisation of this iconic road.”
Mr Donnellan said in response to Mr Ramsay’s comments that it was “too early to accurately measure the impact of the floods on the region’s road network”.
“We will be working closely with local councils to assess the full impact of damages once the flooding has subsided.
“This is not a time for political point scoring. Safety is our number one priority and we will not be opening roads or bridges until it is safe.”
Mr Donnellan said the Andrews Government had made an “unprecedented investment in improving safety on regional roads”.
“The lease of the Port of Melbourne means dedicated funding will go to regional and rural Victoria, helping create jobs and increasing investment in vital infrastructure.”
