When Angus Taylor and Labor’s Federal candidate for Hume Greg Baines take their election campaigns to the Wollondilly Shire over the next 40 days, they will hear that the number one issue is the atrocious state of the local roads.
It’s the reason the local council is calling on all election candidates to help the Shire get the $32.5 million needed to bring roads up to scratch.
The call is part of council’s campaign to twist the arm of both state and federal governments on this vital issue for local residents who have to use the substandard road network.
Council’s 2020 Financial Statements show an estimated $32.5 million is needed, on top of the tens of millions that council continues to apply to renewing its road assets under its long term financial plan to bring roads up to a satisfactory standard.
“This additional amount is well beyond the financial capacity of council in the short term,’’ says Wollondilly mayor Matt Gould.
“Recent extreme weather events have also caused delays to our program and added to the burden of getting our road network up to a reasonable standard.
“Our community remains frustrated at both the condition of the roads and the timeframes required for us to achieve satisfactory standards using only council’s limited income capacity,” he says.
“We are calling on the State and Federal Governments to commit to and allocate urgent funding for road repairs across the Wollondilly Shire to ensure our road network meets the needs of the community and ensures the safety of road users.”
Council has been progressively reconstructing a small percentage of the road network each year, which is making a difference, but it is not enough to get the whole road network to an acceptable standard within the timeframe expected by the community.
In many cases there is no choice but to continue to patch potholes to keep the road usable and try and prevent water from further damaging the pavement, until more permanent work can be done.
The issue is further compounded by the fact that council is responsible for a large number of main roads which in neighbouring councils would be state managed assets.
“The condition of our roads remains the number one concern of our community and continues to place an unacceptable drag on their social, environmental and economic health,” says Mayor Gould.
