By Callum Ludwig
The intersection of Crowley, Lalors and Ayres Road in Healesville with the Maroondah Highway is still a concern for residents.
Eildon MP Cindy McLeish has thrown her support behind the safety of pedestrians, tabling the concern in Parliament on Tuesday 9 August.
Brian Millane lives on the Maroondah Highway and said he was frustrated not seeing any change.
“Seeing them change the east end of Healesville to a 40 zone, even with a number of opportunities to cross at the three pedestrian crossings, and nothing here where the traffic is thickest, is quite frustrating,” he said.
“There’s horns blowing and people screeching along the highway here daily. We walk a lot as well, and the actual levels of the road, which aren’t noticeable when you’re driving, are tripping hazards where there is anywhere between 20 to 40ml difference in height where the surface has been laid and hasn’t been levelled correctly.”
Mr Millane, along with Mike Grigg and Barry Alloway contacted VicRoads in 2016 appealing for the 50km/h speed limit to be extended from the town centre. Their application was rejected with VicRoads citing the low crash rates and the absence of schools or school crossings as the reason no change was needed.
Ms McLeish said it is a very busy section of road where cars, buses, pedestrians and school children interact.
“I have been contacted by concerned parents who worry about their school children running across the busy road to the bus stop to catch the bus to and from school, which is during peak traffic time,” she said.
“Parents want to know their children are safe and protected by appropriate pedestrian crossing measures.”
The highways in the Yarra Ranges have been a contentious point in recent times, with speed limit changes, potholes and a lack of crossings all concerns for residents accessing both Maroondah and Warburton Highway.
Mr Millane said development and population growth in Healesville also contribute to the need for safety precautions to be considered.
“I don’t know what the population increase has been since we made that submission six years ago, but there is continuous development in this town, and it’s exacerbating these issues,” he said.
“With the Vet and other facilities coming in at the east end of town, rather than central that’ll only bring more traffic through the area, and the service station as well has developed into quite a big fast food outlet as well, with more trucks stopping along the roadside, which are impossible for pedestrians to see past.”
At the time of Mr Millane’s submission, he used 2011 Census data which recorded the Healesville population at 6839. Healesville’s population at the actual time of the submission turned out to have grown by over 600 people by 2016, to 7461. In the latest 2021 Census data, Healesville’s population is 7589.
The closest designated pedestrian crossing is over one kilometre away from the intersection, despite a bus stop right across from the BP petrol station that is commonly used by school children at peak hours.
The Minister for Road Safety Ben Caroll responded to Ms McLeish that the Department of Transport will monitor the intersection and consider making further improvements including installing pedestrian-operated signals.
