Gippsland East Nationals MP, Tim Bull, has questioned the location of some of the current wire rope barrier roll out and said the Liberal Nationals will present a more common-sense approach to roadside barrier installations – only in appropriate locations and after community consultation.

 

“I am not opposed to roadside barriers and have in fact requested them in certain areas – but they must be installed in the right and priority locations,” Mr Bull said.

 

“Some of these installations, at great cost, make no sense to motorists, the wider community and even some of the contractors.

 

“We are spending more than $50 million between Sale and Bairnsdale where many kilometres of roadside is dead flat, open grassland and if you drove off the road, all you would hit is a sheep if you were unlucky.

 

“There are plenty of other East Gippsland roads where we have steep drop offs and heavily treed roadsides, like on the Great Alpine Road, where the money would be much better spent,” Mr Bull said.

 

“The Liberal Nationals have committed to honour existing contracts, but stop the blanket roll out of these barriers in locations where they are not needed and where no public consultation took place prior to the decision being made.

 

“The only consultation that went on was this government telling us they are doing this in public meetings.

 

“The Liberal Nationals have also committed an extra billion dollars, in addition to current funding levels, to fix our country road surfaces, where quite frankly this current money could be better spent.”

 

Caption: The Nationals Member for Gippsland East, Tim Bull, who is supportive of roadside barriers in the right locations, has labelled some of the current works a waste of money. He says these pictures highlighting where works are to occur over locations where they would be welcomed but are not earmarked for works, makes no sense.