‘Fix killer road’

By Melissa Grant
The driver, a woman in her 50s, was taken to Dandenong Hospital with non-life threatening injuries, but Sergeant Fiona Tolmie of Emerald Police fears the bend could claim another life.
In April, a 42-year-old South Morang man was killed when the car he was a front-seat passenger in left the Woori-Yallock Road and hit a tree, just south of Bedford Road.
Sgt Tolmie said the bend had averaged one crash a month since the beginning of the year and the details were always frighteningly similar.
“It always seems to be same scenario,” she said.
“Cars travelling north always seem to lose it and there’s no evidence of speed – there’s no evidence to suggest its weather conditions or any fault of the driver.”
Sgt Tolmie said it was fortunate the woman was travelling alone when the collision happened, about 10.30am.
“Anytime there have been front seat passengers they’ve usually been injured,” she said.
Residents have also raised the issue with the road authority to no avail.
Yellingbo resident Phil Stacey told the Gazette in April that he had asked VicRoads to put a guard rail on the bend, 100 metres south of Bedford Road, about two years ago.
“I rang VicRoads and pleaded with them to put a guard up on that bridge and they didn’t. If they did, I don’t think that fatality (in April) would have been a fatality,” he said.
Sgt Tolmie said she wanted VicRoads to investigate the installation of safety barriers, removing a tree on the bend and other safety measures.
Duncan Elliott, regional director, VicRoads Metropolitan South East, said a project had been developed and funded to improve the skid resistance and install enhanced warning signage along Woori Yallock Road, between Kirk Road and Bedford Road.
He said it was anticipated that this work would be completed before the new year.
“VicRoads, in conjunction with Victoria Police, is also investigating other possible improvements to address run-off road crashes between Kirk Road and Bedford Road, including possible safety barriers,” he said.
“Any proposals for improvement projects must be considered and evaluated on a State-wide basis.”
Mr Elliott said there had been five recorded casualty crashes on Woori-Yallock Road between Bedford Road and Kirk Road in the five years to December 2008, which also resulted in two serious injuries.