Planned, and actual federal and state funding for roads in the south-west of Victoria is only a fraction of the amount identified in a landmark report, commissioned by the region's five councils.
In the 2019 Barwon and South West Dairy Supply Chain study, five southwest Victorian councils asked for $317.5 million in road funding over the next decade.
But in the 202-21 state budget the government committed only $17 million, over four years, while federal authorities kicked in $17.5m federal funding, in May last year.
"A lot of that is resealing and intersection works at town entrances and those works desperately needed to be done," Corangamite mayor Councillor Ruth Gstrein said.
"It's a start - the ask is $315m, the $35m that's been delivered is great, but we need to get it happening."
There was still a significant amount of work to be done on the Cobden-Stoneyford, Cobden-Warrnambool and Darlington roads, she said.
"The Darlington road (between the Hamilton and Princes highways) is a major spine but significant lengths of it are only single lane," Cr Gstrein said.
"There are drop-offs in the shoulders of 10-15 centimetres deep on a road that carries B-Doubles and school buses."
It was pleasing to see federal money, under the Roads to Recovery program, but the state government needed to do more.
"We are advocating for the state to spend money on their roads, we are not asking for the shire," she said.
The council study estimated the region was responsible for 24 per cent of Australia's milk production and 27pc of its exports.
"The freight task needed to transport production inputs, milk and final goods to market is significant and costs industry around $345m per annum, or around 29pc of total expenditure," the council study found.
Meanwhile, fertiliser and feed companies, who have criticised the state of the roads, have been joined by major heavy plant operator and quarry operator WA Molan & Sons managing director Peter Molan.
Mr Molan said the Cobden-Terang road, which carried a heavy volume of B-Doubles, hay, grain and fertiliser trucks, was particularly bad
"This road is rough and narrow with no shoulders, this weakens tyre wear and is hard on the trucks and drivers," Mr Molan said.
"It's as rough as guts.
'"I'm 62 years old and it hasn't been done up in my lifetime."
Apart from damage to tyres and other truck parts, the conditions were hard on drivers, he said.
"It's hard on equipment, hard on everything." Mr Molan said.
"It's nerve-wracking along there, you come along and suddenly there is no shoulder - there is no room for any give or take.
"If you have a hay truck, which is four bales high, they don't want to drop a wheel off the road because they'll lurch out to the left and that makes it unstable for them.
"Cattle trucks are the same - if you meet someone the other way, you have to hang on and hope for the best."
The government says it's recently spent nearly $4 million on rebuilding 3.7 kilometres of the Lavers Hill-Cobden road, in one of the biggest maintenance upgrades in the south-west.
The work involved resealing the surface between Cobden and Jancourt East and installing safety barriers.
Roads Minister Ben Carroll said the $3.9m pavement rehabilitation would benefit one thousand daily motorists, particularly freight operators who made up 20 per cent of the daily users of the route.
The work was carried out under the government's $115 million Inland Routes Program, which was improving a number of connecting inland roads between the Great Ocean Road and Princes Highway.
"As one of the biggest road maintenance upgrades in the region over the past year, we are supporting farmers and freight operators getting their products from paddock to plate."
But the state opposition has rejected government claims that it's gone "over and above its original target" for road maintenance in regional Victoria.
Opposition roads spokeswoman Steph Ryan said the evidence provided at state Parliament's Public Accounts and Estimates Committee (PAEC) stood in stark contrast to the "questionable" claims by Mr Carroll.
Ms Ryan said PAEC showed the government would make more drastic cuts to roads maintenance in the 2022-23 Victorian Budget, slashing road asset management to $200 million in the past two years alone.
Spending in 2021-22 plunged to $86.6 million following an expected outlay of $136.9 million - a 37pc cut on projections.
Andrew Miller
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
