By GEORGIA WESTGARTH AND CASEY NEILL
“MADNESS is an understatement.”
Cranbourne North resident of 20 years, Maria Seccas has slammed plans to close Abbotts Road, labelling the shock proposal, a “big disaster”.
Ms Seccas, who works on Abbotts Road, has been driving the length of the thoroughfare for 14 years, saying the closure could add an extra 30 minutes onto her daily trip to work.
“The road is vital,” she said.
“My initial reaction to the plans was ‘stupidity’, and they cannot do this.
“Closing it will most definitely put pressure on the surrounding roads, and if it happens people will have to leave earlier to get to work on time and it’s only going to put added strain on families with kids.”
Ms Seccas is determined to stop the proposed road closure by the Level Crossing Removal Authority (LCRA), which outlined a plan for a new road link over the Cranbourne rail line which would connect Remington Drive to Pound Road and “the truncation of Abbotts Road”, which means its closure.
The LCRA said there had been two deaths and many injuries at the site in the past seven years and “this option would provide significant benefit to the Dandenong South Industrial Precinct”.
But local businesses, which have expressed fear that the closure will cost jobs, have been fighting the proposal since late February.
Ms Seccas and 25 colleagues at A’Bekaert Textiles have signed South Eastern Metropolitan MP Inga Peulich’s petition for the State Government to abandon the Dandenong South plan.
And Ms Seccas hopes a big turnout at the next community forum might help halt the controversial plans.
“Once a decision is made, a lot of people will come out of the wood work and ask reasons why, if we can get a lot of people expressing their opinions to the LCRA there might be a slim hope,” she said.
“The parliamentarians don’t have to drive up and down this road every day and even if they stood out here for an afternoon to watch the traffic flow, I’d hope they would have second thoughts.”
Ms Peulich has backed local residents’ concerns saying; re-routing traffic heading along Abbotts Road between Cranbourne, Lynbrook, Lyndhurst and beyond would add an extra 1.5 kilometres each way and further burden the surrounding road network.
“It takes up to 45 minutes to cross Westernport Highway on Thompson Road, 35 minutes at Hall Road, and up to 40 minutes on Glasscocks Road – a dirt road!” she said.
“It can take 40 minutes to get down Abbotts Road to turn at South Gippsland Highway and now they’re planning to extend that by 1.5km, as well as putting more pressure on the Pound Road intersection which will impact on South Gippsland Highway, Greens Road and the Dandenong Bypass.”
But Dandenong MP Gabrielle Williams said there were other options on the table.
“The LCRA has mucked this up,” she said.
“I’ve raised this with Minister Allan as the minister responsible and have got her assurance that what was put forward is not the position of government.”
The Level Crossing Removal Authority (LCRA) will host an event “for input into design options” where they will present “a detailed overview of all options under consideration” and facilitate discussion around each option.
The industry forum will take place from 6.30pm to 8pm on Thursday 17 March.
RSVP to contact@levelcrossings.vic.gov.au or call 1800 762 667 during business hours. LCRA will confirm the address upon RSVP.
