By Tyler Wright
A car was trapped in a pothole on Goudiesdale Road in Selby on Thursday 15 November after its wheel fell into an eroded part of the residential road, with Yarra Ranges Council expected to complete future works on the stretch.
Yarra Ranges Council’s Infrastructure and Environment Director Bill Millard said the council has undertaken “temporary remediation work and placed a metal plate over the section to ensure that traffic can flow along this road safely”.
“On receiving this request, Council contractors acted quickly to reopen this narrow road within hours to ensure residents had access to their homes,” Mr Millard said.
“We will be undertaking further investigations at this site and expect that the road will require further work.”
It has come amid heavy rain and wet conditions has putting pressure on roads and main arterial in the Yarra Ranges, creating hazards for drivers across the region.
Selby CFA Fire Brigade captain Ian Lewis said the main potholes appear on the main roads, including the stretch coming around from the roundabouts through Selby, between Belgrave and the Puffing Billy Railway bridge.
“It’s a very high traffic piece of road, unfortunately the rain keeps coming, it keeps getting wet underneath, and it will always break up… I’m sure eventually Vic Roads will be able to fix it, but they won’t be able to fix it properly until it dries out a bit,” Mr Lewis said.
Mr Lewis said road slips have also been an issue for motorists in the Belgrave and Belgrave South areas.
“We’ve advised our drivers of our vehicles to try and stay on the firm surface, as soon as you start start going off it [and] you get stuck stuck in slippery stuff, anything can happen,” Mr Lewis said.
“If it’s wet, then you just really need to take it easy on the corners, so that you don’t end up losing control and requiring our attention, because we’d rather not have to attend people that have been injured.
“That’s the instruction that goes out to our drivers as well; the main thing is to get where we’re going, get there safely and do the job we’re intended to do.”
Mr Millard said he would like to reiterate that “our region and many parts of Australia are experiencing wetter than normal conditions, which is pitting pressure on Council assets”.
“We appreciate the community’s patience at this time,” he said.
