Martha HAYLETT (Ripon) (14:35): (381)

My question is to the Minister for Roads and Road Safety, and I ask: what is the state Labor government doing to make the roads safer for pedestrians and motorists in the Calder Highway towns of Inglewood and Wedderburn in my electorate?

Roads are the number one issue in Ripon, and constituents contact me regularly regarding inconsistent speed limits in our country towns. Recently locals in Inglewood and Wedderburn have banded together to call for action to improve safety along the Calder Highway in each community.

In Inglewood, Peter Moore and the Inglewood Development and Tourism Committee are calling for a speed reduction to 40 kilometres per hour along Brooke Street, as accidents and near misses are all too common. And in Wedderburn, Cheryl Fowler and over 620 locals have signed a petition calling for a speed reduction along the High Street stretch of the Calder Highway, as residents struggle to cross the busy road to access the pharmacy and post office.

Trucks and other vehicles race through both towns in the Loddon shire, and locals want speed limits reduced to improve safety for all ages. I look forward to the minister’s response.