Red tape a killer

By Tania Martin
YARRA Ranges Council has called on the State Government to cut red tape to reduce speed zones in Mount Evelyn in a bid to ease the road toll.
The shire last year recorded its highest number of road fatalities since 2001 with 15 people dying on its roads.
At a meeting last Tuesday, 9 February, councillors agreed it was time to take their concerns to the top – to Roads Minister Tim Pallas.
The council is calling on the State Government to change the criteria enabling speed limits to be reduced to 50 km/h on all the roads leading into Mount Evelyn including York, Monbulk, Birmingham and Hereford roads.
It’s also calling for reduced limits in Montrose, Mt Dandenong, Selby, Tecoma, Wandin North, Woori Yallock and Yarra Glen.
Lyster Ward’s Councillor Samantha Dunn said the council had spent years campaigning for speed limits to be reduced through its townships.
“It seems VicRoads has a set of criteria for speed limits in metropolitan town centres and nowhere in the shire seems to meet them,” she said.
Cr Dunn said that for a speed limit to be reduced it had to be in a predominantly retail development area with shops on both sides of the street for not less than 200 metres.
“We know in the Yarra Ranges we have little townships all over the place but there is no way anywhere will come near 200 metres from a retail development,” Cr Dunn said.
“But that doesn’t mean there’s not a lot of pedestrian traffic and it doesn’t mean they are safe places to be.”
Billanook Ward’s Cr Tim Heenen said it was not just about changing the speed limits but about educating drivers to slow down.
He said people needed to get out of the habit of speeding.
“We have had some tragic deaths and we have the cops out there with their radar guns but drivers should be slowing down by themselves, not because the cops are out there,” he said
Melba Ward councillor, and Lilydale Police Sergeant, Terry Avery said the State Government was continually calling for answers to reduce the road toll and this was a perfect example of what could help.
“It’s as simple as reviewing a set of guidelines,” he said.
But VicRoads’ south-east regional director, Duncan Elliott, said that in 2008-09 the road authority had completed a case-by-case review of speed limits in the townships across the Yarra Ranges.
“This review found a 50km/h speed limit was appropriate only for Sassafras and Kallista,” he said.
“We have no plans to introduce 50km/h speed limits in other townships.”
The Mail contacted the State Government but the issue was referred back to VicRoads.