Last Wednesday, the Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) Manangatang Branch rallied locals to protest a snap decision to reduce the speed limit along the Robinvale-Sea Lake Road.
The local community had been calling for years for the dilapidated Robinvale-Sea Lake Road to be fixed to make it safe for drivers and fit-for-purpose.
But, instead of fixing the road, the speed limit was reduced from 100 to 80 overnight, without any community consultation.
This is an unacceptable response to our degrading rural road network.
It does nothing to address the core problem; Victoria's rural roads are being allowed to fall into disrepair over years of chronic underfunding and are consequently becoming more and more unsafe for road users.
The road is very narrow in places, the edges are crumbling, and it has several crests and corners, where it is too dangerous for trucks to pass each other.
Reducing the speed won't make the road any wider, smoother or fill in any of the potholes or massive drop-offs on the edges of the road.
Families, farmers, transporters, and businesses living and working in north-west Victoria deserve functional, safe roads as much as every other Victorian.
Growers in the Manangatang region are already disadvantaged by delays to the Murray Basin Rail Project and the new speed reduction will only increase road freight costs during the upcoming harvest.
The community is also concerned about the impact on local school children and workers who use this road every day to get to school and work.
Victoria needs a fit-for-purpose regional road network to improve community safety and reduce freight costs.
Stop lowering speed limits, and start properly funding the regional road network.
- David Jochinke, VFF president
