Gibson Electorate

The Hon. C.L. WINGARD (Gibson—Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing) (15:15): I rise to speak on a number of important issues that are happening in my local community and my electorate and to update the house on the Hove crossing project. I have spoken in this house many times before about the Oaklands crossing project, and I am pleased to let everyone know that the continuing benefits in my community as a result of this project are being very well received. In fact, I get stopped in the street regularly by people who are so excited about the delivery of this project. After 30 or 40 years in the waiting, this has been a great result for everyone in my local area.

Recently, I met with a number of local residents from Hove and Warradale at one of the new Hove pedestrian crossings, which was part of the upgraded Oaklands crossing project. Residents living close to the Hove crossing raised their concerns with me about the frequency and duration of pedestrian crossing bells at Hove and the Seventh Avenue crossings. In particular, Carol and Emily from Hove were concerned about the noise and pitch of the crossing bells. The sound of the bells was impacting on residents as they slept in the early morning and late night. Emily is a shiftworker as well.

Following feedback from residents, I reached out to the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government and relayed to him my concerns and the concerns of my community. Since speaking with the minister, DPTI signal engineers have checked the volume of the bells and the three activated pedestrian crossings and made sure that they are set to the minimal level while maintaining the required compliance. The tone and pitch of the bells have also been adjusted.

Already these improvements have provided a lot of relief for the neighbours and local residents. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the residents who contacted me and worked with me on the crossing, and I look forward to continuing to work with them to make sure we get the best possible outcomes for our community. That switches us to the Hove railway crossing, which has been a longstanding problem in my community and for all those who travel along Brighton Road.

Having upgraded the Oaklands crossing, this is where our attention is now focused. It is one of the biggest concerns that is raised with me in my local area and it causes congestion and delays for motorists on a daily basis. Over 4,000 vehicles use Brighton Road each day and when the Hove crossing is down it means that the intersection is blocked by boom gates for 25 per cent of peak travel time. I have worked with my neighbouring MPs, including the member for Black (Minister for Environment), the Minister for Transport, and our federal colleague, the member for Boothby, Ms Nicolle Flint, to solve this local issue for residents and commuters.

The federal and Marshall governments have announced $171 million in funding towards the grade separation of the level crossing at Brighton Road, Hove. The upgrade, removing a road-rail crossing point, will mean reduced travel times for motorists, increased reliability for buses that use Brighton Road, safety for all road users—motorists, cyclists and pedestrians—and improve connectivity and livability for surrounding areas. It really is a big upside for our entire community.

The community and stakeholder engagement is an important part of this upgrade and the planning processes will continue. An extensive consultation with the landowners, businesses and residents has already begun, but it will continue and I will keep delivering updated information to my community, as I did with my Fix Oaklands Crossing campaign, with e-news and website updates. My community can find out more about the Fix Brighton Road project as it unfolds by registering their email on the Fix Brighton Road website or by contacting my office on 8377 3500. All they have to do is mention Fix Brighton Road-Hove Crossing, and they will be in our community and engaged through our email process, and we will keep them up to date with everything that is happening.

With the last couple of minutes that I have I would love to talk about the people who entered my annual Christmas card competition. This is a wonderful success in my local community. Congratulations to April and Levi from Stella Maris Parish School and Charlotte from Marion Primary School on their fantastic artwork. We have some wonderful artists, young artists, in our local community and they were the people who did the designs for my Christmas cards that I look forward to sending out very soon.

I also want to acknowledge the Marilyns. You have heard me speak about them before in this place. They are famous at the Brighton jetty swim and they raise a considerable amount of money for the Cancer Council SA. The member for Black and I had a winter warmer fundraiser earlier this year, where we raised more than $1,600 to go towards the Marilyns and their Cancer Council fundraising. It was great to make that donation to them recently.

Finally, I want to talk about Ben Pethick Reserve in Marion. Earlier this month, I attended the Oaklands Estate Residents' Association AGM and was informed that the toddler play equipment at Ben Pethick Reserve would be removed by the local council. Understandably, residents were concerned that the equipment was going, because it was suitable for younger children. I wrote to the Marion council and I am pleased to report that toddler swings will now be installed at nearby Oaklands Estate and that the equipment at Ben Pethick Reserve will only be removed once the new swings are installed.