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Royal National Park Roads
A decade of frustration over the maintenance of the Royal National Park’s roads by the RTA are detailed in a letter to the State Minister of Roads sent in March.

The views are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Bundeena Info.

By John Gawthorne

URGENT REQUEST to the MINISTER to UPGRADE the ROADS & TRAFFIC AUTHORITY’s (RTA) NETWORK of DILAPIDATED ROADS in the ROYAL NATIONAL PARK (RNP) and URGENT UPGRADE/ RENEWAL of INFRASTRUCTURE

Although the RTA has been requested on many occasions over the years to fix the appalling state of the RTA’s RNP road network, the usual response is “insufficient funding allocation due to the RTA’s low priority tourist road classification hut some of the worst sections could be addressed in March 2008”. The villages of Bundeena & Maianbar (surrounded by the RNP) are mostly occupied by permanent residents, NOT TOURISTS! The bulk of the traffic on the RTA’s RNP road network is generated by the. permanent residents and service workers in transport, electricity, water, police, national park, fire brigade, construction, shop supplies, service station, telephone, catering, school, clubs, churches, maintenance, ambulance (spare a thought for the injured & sick being transported over these rough roads) doctors & nurses etc – NONE CAN BE DESCRIBED AS TOURISTS!

In 2007 the RTA commenced roadworks on the worst crash sections of their RNP road network being Flat Rock Creek & Audley Avenue. Although the majority of fatalities/injuries occurred in these sections the RTA used the low cost road resealing procedure of “spraying the road surface with bitumen, spreading rolling aggregates with sweeping loose aggregates”. The roadworks were performed over the existing bumps, causing severe corrugations on the many bends. The RTA then only “repaved selected bends with asphalt” The RTA (Parramatta) rejected urgent phone requests to use proper asphalt resealing procedures because of “lack of finance allocation, not in possession of asphalting equipment & RTA’s low priority tourist rating of RNP roads. The worst sections of Sir Bertram Stevens Drive (south of the Audley weir and before Flat Rock Creek) were last resealed about 35 years ago, hence the appalling condition & the urgent need for immediate asphalt pavement resealing.

The Audley weir floods even with moderate rainfall. The weir is an outdated relic with the outlet always partially blocked and the weir’s roadway is lower than the adjoining footpathl There is usually a significant time lapse from the time of flooding to the erection of safety barriers & subsequent dismantling after flooding subsides. This unsatisfactory situation persists despite over 40 years of continuous campaigning to the then Commisioner of Main Roads and now the RTA for the weir upgrade. (please note the alternative & indirect road route via Waterfall remains in a disgraceful condition).

For over 10 years written requests have been made to the RTA to upgrade the traffic lights at the intersection of the RNP road with the Princes Highway at Loftus to allow RNP motorists to safely negotiate the right turn exit onto the highway BY STOPPING THE 90KPH FAST MOVING NORTHWARD BOUND HIGHWAY TRAFFIC. This simple safety request has been continually rejected by the RTA despite the many collisions & injuries. Digressing it would appear that the Princes Highway tramway crossing (just to the north of this inter­section) should be upgraded with boom gates.

The old & narrow wooden bridge (over Flat Rock Creek) is inappropriate for todays much heavier vehicles & increased level of traffic. Replacement of this bridge is long overdue as its “twin bridge” (just to the west) was replaced by a modern concrete structure many years ago.

Ten years ago over 300 people & invited guests attended Bundeena’s RNP ROAD SAFETY COMMUNITY MEETING to address “the poor condition of the road network & high crash, death & injury rates on average a much higher level than the rest of Sydney”. The horrifying crash statistics were presented by NSW police. The meeting was organised by local residents Kerin Southam & Moya Turner & amongst the invited guests were:

  • then local MP Ian McManus who was also parliamentary secretary for police & emergency services
  • David Dansie as chairman (former Bundeena Primary School Principal)
  • Sutherland Council Roads Safety Officer
  • Sutherland Council Traffic Engineer
  • National Parks District Manager
  • RNP Senior Officer
  • RTA Road & Safety Officer
  • NSW State Member Malcolm Kerr
  • Former NSW State Member Lorna Stone
  • 3 Police officers titled Sutherland Commander, Head of Highway Patrol, Accident Investigation, respectively

In the ensuing years Sutherland Council (responsible for Bundeena Drive, Maianbar Road & local roads) responded by re-aligning known black spot sections & added cycleways during the latest upgrades. These improvements contributed significantly to road safety.

In contrast the RTA’s response over the ten years can only be described as appalling.

This is an urgent request for the MINISTER to direct the RTA to:

  • produce a forward plan for its RNP roads
  • allocate sufficient funding for all of network & infrastructure its RNP road
  • upgrade classification of the RTA’s RNP road network from low priority tourist
  • commence an immediate ASPHALT RESEALING PROGRAMME for ALL of the RTA’s RNP road network
  • address the aforesaid critical RTA infrastructure on its RNP road network

 

Road Reprieve

In a unexpected coincidence the RTA has announced major works on Sir Betram Stevens Drive starting April 28th. The work will include road resurfacing with asphalt of the worst section of Sir Betram Stevens Drive between Warumbul Rd to Flat Rock. The work area will encompass the half kilometre stretch which currently results in  drivers crossing over the double lines to avoid the long series of bumps.

The work is expected to take two weeks or longer depending on weather conditions. During this time Sir Betram Stevens Drive  wil be closed 24 hours a day.  Bundeena Maianbar residents will still be able to use the road via the Waterfall exit.

For further queries contact Peter Andrews from the RTA on 9598 7828 or the RTA Sydney Traffic Manangement Centre on 131 700. 

 

 

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