Maitland West Ward councillor Nicole Penfold has told local government colleague Bob Geoghegan to put his money where his mouth is and push for the State to fix the city’s congested by-pass.
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Cr Penfold said the lack of a west-bound overpass at Maitland Railway Station is the biggest complaint during the local government election campaign.
She wants to put Cr Geoghegan on notice and said he can’t just give the issue lip service when it is such a hot city topic.
“Despite construction of the $45m east-bound flyover there are still ongoing issues in the area,” she said.
“The traffic gridlock is so frustrating. You get a good run one way but get stuck coming back home to the west of an afternoon,” Cr Penfold said.
“The job was only half done and it needs to be finished, we need the other half constructed and we need a commitment from the State to fix it.”
Mayoral candidate and Liberal Party member Bob Geoghegan told Fairfax Media last month that traffic gridlock alongside the one-way overpass is certainly a major election issue.
Since opening in September last year, the overpass helped reduce travel times for east-bound traffic but drivers travelling west are stuck in long queues.
Cr Geoghegan reiterated calls he made earlier this year for the installation of traffic lights to operate at the roundabout during peak hours.
Earlier this year he was quick to dismiss the need for another one-way fly over flagged after the 2011 election when the Liberal government looked for ways to fix the congestion. “It’s clear there are unacceptable delays. Although the new overpass is not yet a year old, it has been long enough to see that this will be an ongoing problem which is only likely to get worse,” Cr Geoghegan said in March.
This week he said the RMS needs to carry out a comprehensive study of highway traffic before money is committed. He said he could push for that to happen.
Cr Penfold said a secondary issue is Maitland Park being used as a rat run putting lives at risk. “We need to hold the Liberal Party accountable. This is something they are running on and they are also in government. We deserve a commitment. The front of Cr Geoghegan’s election brochure says he has connections with State and Federal governments. If so he should do something about it.”
