An extra gap will be created in the wire ropes barriers on the Calder Highway following a review into the divisive new safety measures.
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VicRoads audited the barriers’ installation at a section of the highway near Castlemaine after some Country Fire Authority members said there were insufficient breaks in the barriers, which had allowed fires to develop unnecessarily.
An all-weather additional emergency crossover point will be created in the center median of the thoroughfare, halfway between Pollards Road and Harmony Way in Faraday.
VicRoads’ safe system road infrastructure program director Bryan Sherritt said flexible safety barriers were helping reduce road trauma across the state.
“In collaboration with CFA, SES and Victoria Police, this additional cross-over point along the Calder Highway will ensure the barriers continue to save lives, while emergency services can continue quickly and safety responding to incidents,” Mr Sherritt said.
CFA district 2 operations manager Bill Johnstone said the organisation was “pretty happy with the outcome” of the review.
“VicRoads have taken steps to allay the concerns we had, which is a good thing,” he said.
Elphinstone fire brigade captain Andy Chapman has been vocal in his opposition of the new safety measures, suggesting earlier this year it was “only a matter of time before someone gets hurt or killed”.
He said the ropes were only required in the median strip, not near the hard shoulders of the highway.
“We should be giving people as much room as possible,” he said.
“One day it will create a horrible accident.”
Mr Chapman suggested cars that hit the wire ropes near the hard shoulder were at risk of being t-boned by vehicles approaching from behind.
VicRoads is also undertaking state-wide mapping of the safety barriers, to make sure that emergency services have up to date information on the location of access breaks, emergency cross over points and interchanges.
An internal review of the barriers installed along the section of the Calder found they were installed in line with the relevant VicRoads guidelines in relation to offsets.
The review found barriers have a two metre offset on the right hand side and at least four metre offset on the left hand side.
The barriers, which have been criticised by motorcyclists and other road users – some of whom organised rallies against the government, were credited with preventing a serious crash on the Calder Highway this week, but the car was stuck on the wire ropes for a number of hours.