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🇦🇺 Australia /Energy & Infrastructure

Urgent safety upgrades demanded for Australia's Sturt Highway freight route

From ABC Australia · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Communities and local councils are demanding urgent safety upgrades for a 70-kilometer section of the Sturt Highway in Australia, a key freight route.
  • Recent incidents, including a fatal multi-vehicle crash and a truck rollover last month, have heightened safety concerns.
  • Calls are being made for improvements like overtaking lanes to enhance safety and productivity along the busy highway.

Urgent safety upgrades are being demanded for a critical 70-kilometer stretch of the Sturt Highway, a vital freight route connecting New South Wales and South Australia. Local communities and councils are calling for immediate action to address mounting safety concerns on the highway, which has been the site of recent serious incidents.

far too many sketchy episodes

— Daniel LinklaterDescribing the safety issues on the Sturt Highway.

The section between Gol Gol and Euston in southwestern New South Wales has been a focal point for safety worries, particularly concerning intersections used by agricultural and freight traffic. Last month, a man in his 40s died in a multi-vehicle crash on this stretch, just hours after a truck driver narrowly escaped injury in a rollover nearby. Preliminary data from Transport for NSW indicates multiple crashes, including injuries and tow-away incidents, on this segment in recent years.

Local leaders are emphasizing the need for improvements. Wentworth Shire Mayor Daniel Linklater described the highway as having "far too many sketchy episodes" and stressed the importance of making the corridor "safer and more productive." He highlighted that investment in the Sturt Highway is a primary advocacy area for the Sturt Highway Taskforce, a committee comprising eight councils.

We have to make this corridor safer and more productive.

— Daniel LinklaterStating the need for safety improvements on the highway.

Ruth McRae, chair of the taskforce and Mayor of Murrumbidgee Shire, pointed to high-speed traffic, significant freight volumes, and driver fatigue as contributing factors to crashes. She noted that the road's infrastructure has not kept pace with the increasing traffic demands. Data from Transport for NSW between July 2019 and June 2024 revealed 277 crashes along the NSW portion of the highway, resulting in 241 casualties, including 15 fatalities and 40 serious injuries. Multi-vehicle crashes accounted for 50% of these incidents.

People use this road every day and tell us that they don't feel that the road has kept pace with the traffic task it's now carrying.

— Ruth McRaeExplaining the perceived inadequacy of the highway's infrastructure for current traffic demands.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Australia in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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