Eight new roadside stopping areas will be constructed on the Princes Highway between Stratford and Bairnsdale where safety barriers have been installed, to give drivers more dedicated areas to pull over safely.
In response to community feedback, Minister for Roads and Minister for Road Safety and the TAC today announced that six new stopping areas would be installed on the Melbourne-bound side of the highway and two new bays on the Bairnsdale-bound side of the highway.
Safety upgrades are currently being rolled out on the highway as part of a $51.5 million Towards Zero investment by the Andrews Labor Government, including flexible safety barriers on the roadside and along the centre of the road.
The new pull-over areas will be large enough to accommodate trucks and bring the total number of stopping bays to 12 Melbourne-bound and 8 Bairnsdale-bound – or roughly every 3-4 kilometres.
Regional Roads Victoria has also undertaken a thorough risk assessment and will only install roadside barriers at high-risk areas in the remaining section of works – between Providence Ponds and Bairnsdale – where there are clusters of trees or other hazards.
This will provide drivers with more opportunities to pull over in this section of the highway.
The installation of the new pull-over areas is expected to begin in October and be completed in December.
The entire package of works, including the installation of barriers between Providence Ponds and Bairnsdale and final road sealing, is due to be completed early next year.
The road safety upgrade is part of the $1.4 billion Towards Zero Action Plan funded through the Transport Accident Commission (TAC).
Quotes attributable to Minister for Roads and Minister for Road Safety and the TAC Jaala Pulford
“I asked Regional Roads Victoria to work closely with the community on the rollout of this life-saving infrastructure – and that’s exactly what they’ve done.”
“These pull-over sections strike a balance between safety and community feedback on this section of the Princes Highway.”
Reviewed 19 August 2020