Lovell backs push to widen highway between Red Cliffs and Irymple

MEMBER for Northern Victoria Wendy Lovell has backed a push to improve safety of the Calder Highway between Red Cliffs and Irymple.

Ms Lovell told State Parliament this week the seven-kilometre section of the highway should be upgraded from a two-lane to four-lane carriageway.

She said there had been a dramatic increase in traffic over the years between Red Cliffs and Irymple and called on the Victorian Government to fund the duplication of the road.

“The current infrastructure is not appropriate for the increased traffic on the road, and the local community are calling for a duplication to make the road a four-lane carriageway — two lanes for traffic in each direction,” Ms Lovell said.

The call follows concerns raised by Cr Glenn Milne at Mildura Council’s September meeting following a recent accident at the corner of Calder Highway and Belar Avenue.

“There has probably been about four or five crashes there at least in the past 12 months,” Cr Milne said.

“It may need some flashing lights or something … but something certainly needs to be done before somebody is killed,” he said.

“I don’t think even an 80kmh zone is going to help because people seem to drive out in front of cars coming down the highway.”

Cr Milne asked for council to make an approach to the Victorian Government in an effort to rectify the issue “as a matter of urgency”.

As well as State Government funding to upgrade the road from Red Cliffs to Fifteenth Street and Ginquam Avenue, Ms Lovell also asked Roads and Road Safety Minister Ben Carroll for a commitment that a safety audit would be conducted at the Belar Avenue Extension intersection with the highway to improve safety for motorists.

Ms Lovell said members of the local community had raised the safety concerns with her.