With the winter weather bringing heavy rains, potholes have become a hot topic for the community and a key focus for Wattle Range Council.
"As you would imagine, with almost 2,500 km of roads to maintain, and almost 2,000 km of them being unsealed, potholes are a high priority on our works list," Council's Chief Executive Officer, Ben Gower explains.
"We are aware that a large amount of our unsealed roads have deteriorated with the recent heavy rains, with potholes being the major issue. We are prioritising our resources and have currently deployed the following:
- All five graders are working on the unsealed road network undertaking maintenance grading; and
- Two crews are out undertaking pothole patching using loaders including the placement of additional gravel on roads
"As of today (Monday, July 26), additional resources have been redeployed, with our Parks and Gardens team moving across to assist with pothole patching. This will mean we will have a further dozen staff out on the unsealed road network to address the backlog of work fixing potholes.
"The challenge around maintaining Council’s unsealed roads is a long-term one. We have a large number of roads that need additional gravel pavement. This additional pavement reduces the number of potholes, and improves the overall strength of the unsealed road. This year we have committed to spending $1,200,000 on additional gravel pavement for our unsealed roads, which is an increase of almost $400,000 from the previous year," he said.
"The issue of potholes on sealed roads is a different challenge. Not all roads are Council’s responsibility to maintain and the State Government is responsible for maintaining the condition of our major transport links and highways." (See map)
The following major roads within the Wattle Range Council area are the responsibility of the State Government:
- Princes Highway
- Riddoch Highway
- Southern Ports Highway
- Mount Burr Road
- Overland Track
- Mount McIntyre Road
- Nangwarry Road
- Wattle Range Road (unsealed)
- Claywells Road
- The Springs Road
- Kangaroo Flat Road
- Mile Hill and Diagonal Roads
- Casterton Road
- Church Street, Penola
- Robe Road, Penola
- Julian Street (East), Penola
- Ridge Terrace, Millicent
- Main Street, Millicent
- Williams Road, Millicent
- Mount Gambier Road, Millicent
- George Street, Millicent
- Adelaide Road, Millicent
- Railway Terrace East, Tantanoola
Mr Gower went on to say: "While Council’s sealed roads are in relatively good condition, the major State Government road network is not, and needs urgent attention. Council have consistently requested repair works on these roads, however, these requests have been generally ignored for years. Discussion at a recent Council meeting on this very problem has prompted another letter to be sent to the Minster for Transport, with copies to both our State and Federal Members, seeking urgent action."
"We welcome community assistance in advising us of problem areas when it comes to the local roads. We invite you to contact us on 08 8733 0900 or email council@wattlerange.sa.gov.au to report such issues. Remember the more information you can provide the better, so be sure to include the location and size of the pothole in your report."
Regarding issues on any of the major State Government roads listed above, residents are encouraged to refer these to the Department of Infrastructure and Transport on 1300 872 677 or at www.dit.sa.gov.au/contact_us/compliments_and_complaints
For further information please contact:
Peter Halton, Director Engineering Services
Email: engineering@wattlerange.sa.gov.au
Telephone: (08) 8733 0901
or
Ben Gower, Chief Executive Officer
Email: council@wattlerange.sa.gov.au
Telephone: (08) 8733 0900