Yarra Ranges council is continuing its work to seal 180km of community roads in partnership with landowners and the Federal Government, as part of its Roads for the Community Initiative.
The initiative, which runs until 2028, will result in 50 years’ worth of roadworks completed in nine years, thanks to $150 million in Federal Government funding.
Yarra Ranges Mayor, Jim Child, said that 22 roads had been sealed to date, with 6km of road projects under construction.
“We’ve had fantastic progress and feedback over the first two years of Roads for the Community, where we prioritised roads around community infrastructure – such as schools and preschools – and started working on residential roads,” Cr Child said.
“The funding we’re receiving from the Federal Government increases as the project continues, so things are starting to accelerate quickly.
“As of the start of February, we’d finished constructing 6.7km of road, with another 6km on the way and another 9.3km – some 31 roads – just having their special charges formally declared.
“These property owners, and visitors to the region, will have improved vehicle access, reduced dust and mud, lower ongoing maintenance needs and improved stormwater runoff, and we’ve had great feedback from people living on our first sealed roads.”
Before Roads for the Community began, landowners and Council would split the cost of sealing an un-sealed (dirt or gravel) road through a Special Charge Scheme. This cost would be as high as $15,000 per development unit, which would be repaid through Council rates yearly over 10 years.
The Federal Government’s funding heavily subsidises each landowner’s contribution as part of Roads for the Community, capping the cost at $7000 per property through the life of the project.
For every Special Charge to progress, every landowner involved is informed, engaged and surveyed to gauge support for the project and the special charge. A Special Charge Scheme is declared when a majority of landowners surveyed support the project going ahead after this engagement.
Cr Child said the Federal Government support had allowed Council to prioritise road sealing works decades ahead of schedule.
“Thanks to this significant investment, we’ve been able to map out more than 180km of roadworks through Roads for the Community,” he said.
“Because Councils previously hadn’t received funding for sealing of unsealed roads, this is more than 50 years’ worth of roadworks that we’ll be able to complete before 2030.
“These works will benefit more than 7000 families and countless visitors to the region, and I’m excited to see works progressing as funding ramps up this year.
“Another 30 roads – involving 13km of road sealing – will have Special Charge Schemes presented for declaration in the first half of this year alone.”
To find out more, read answers to frequently-asked questions or view the priority list of roads, visit yarraranges.vic.gov.au/RFC
