Landmark $3m works program to improve cyclist and pedestrian safety
Published on 05 March 2018
Mildura Rural City Council is about to roll out a major suite of road safety works in the coming 18 months in an unprecedented push to improve cyclist and pedestrian safety on our roads.
The large program of works, which includes $2.26million in Victorian Government funding from the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) as part of the Safe System Road Infrastructure Program, will see Council introduce a range of measures across Mildura’s built-up areas.
Councillor for Community Safety Simon Clemence said the safety measures were a combination of proactive steps to ensure traffic incidents involving both cyclists and pedestrians are significantly reduced, or in response to incident hotspots identified through feedback from the community and key agencies.
Cr Clemence said one of the key areas to receive attention was the area around the busy Ontario Avenue medical precinct which is slated for a raft of works to improve pedestrian safety, including:
- roundabout at the intersection of Ontario Avenue and Twelfth Street (*already completed)
- roundabout at the intersection of Ontario Avenue and Thirteenth Street
- five zebra crossings at key points in Ontario Avenue and Thirteenth Street in the medical precinct
- timed 40km/h zones in Ontario Avenue and Thirteenth Street.
Other measures targeting cyclist and pedestrian safety in built-up residential areas, along with amenity of residents, include the introduction of 40km/h speed zones in 21 areas.
“These streets were selected based on feedback from focus groups we’ve been working with over the past year as well as issues including traffic volume, road geometry and other risk factors,” Cr Clemence said.
The new speed limits will be introduced in residential areas bounded by Seventh and Sixteenth Streets and Benetook and Flora Avenues, as well as the Ontario Avenue and Thirteenth Street medical precinct. The speed limit on Mildura’s main roads won’t change
“Studies have shown that a pedestrian’s chance of survival in a crash with a vehicle decreases significantly with vehicle speeds above 30km/h,” Cr Clemence said.
Other major works include the installation of three disability-accessible crossings for pedestrians in Deakin Avenue between Thirteenth and Fifteenth Streets, increased pedestrian crossing times at the Deakin Avenue and Eighth Street traffic lights, and reduced speed limits in CBD laneways.
“Ultimately this is about ensuring the community, including children and the elderly, can feel safe walking around our residential areas and our busier pedestrian areas, such as the Ontario Avenue medical precinct and our CBD,” Cr Clemence said.
The works are expected to be rolled out over the coming 18 months.
Motorists are reminded there will be traffic disruptions at certain points during the works and drivers’ patience is appreciated.
Media enquiries
Ben Piscioneri
p) (03) 5018 8689
e) ben.piscioneri@mildura.vic.gov.au