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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-03-04 Daily Xml
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NAIRNE PRIMARY SCHOOL CROSSING

Mr GOLDSWORTHY (Kavel) (15:19): I am pleased to speak today on an issue that I have raised in the house on a number of occasions, and it concerns the ongoing problems and issues in relation to the Nairne Primary School crossing down on the main street in that township in my electorate. There has been some progress in looking to resolve this issue of traffic congestion, the safety of the school children and a number of related issues where we have seen a commitment of $1 million from the three levels of government, federal, state and local, in an effort to solve the problems with the school crossing.

That involves: the construction of a left-hand turning lane on Saleyard Road, which is the road that runs up to the school, in particular; moving the school crossing to the other side of the Woodside Road intersection; some upgrading of some footpaths; and another pathway from the main road into the school grounds.

Last week in our local Adelaide Hills newspaper, The Courier, there was an article identifying the commitment of funds and the scope of the works in an effort to improve the situation, and there was a very good editorial that basically said this is a bandaid solution to fixing the problems. There has been extensive consultancy work on this matter, and the scope of the works the government is undertaking is not the preferred option.

Some more extensive works had been proposed but the government has decided to take the cheaper option, if I can say that, even though it is costing $1 million. It is a very expensive bandaid solution. I had the pleasure of writing a letter to the editor of the local newspaper, which was published in today's edition, highlighting the point that it is a very expensive bandaid solution to the problems of the primary school crossing and I doubt very much that it will solve those problems.

I know that the government bureaucrats have had meetings with the local council and other stakeholders and shown them some computer modelling—supposedly, the latest and greatest computer modelling—on how the traffic flow will improve, but we all know that what we see on computer screens and virtual reality is far different from the reality of the situation, and we will see—

The Hon. M.J. Atkinson: What does the local mayor think of it?

Mr GOLDSWORTHY: We will come to that. So, we will see if these works bring about the results proposed. However, I doubt very much that we will see a vast improvement in the situation, and members of the school community share that view.

This matter goes back quite a number of years, and I have endeavoured to involve the previous minister for road safety. I invited her to a community meeting, which she refused to attend. It was only a meeting with the school principal and some local people. She refused to attend that meeting. She sneaked up in her big white car to have a look at the situation herself. I expect a vastly improved level of engagement by the newly appointed Minister for Road Safety, but we will see where we go with that.

Talking about letters to the editor of the local paper, a letter was published, along with mine, from Mr Andrew Milazzo, Executive Director of Transport Services for the Department for Transport, Energy and Infrastructure, and I have a couple of comments to make about that. It is rather odd that a senior bureaucrat would write a public letter questioning the opinion of a member of parliament. The local federal member of parliament has given his opinion, and we see Mr Milazzo questioning that.

Time expired.

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