TWO intersections on Terang’s outskirts will be upgraded with more than $1m in government to improve access for heavy vehicles to the town’s industrial area.
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Work on the Princes Highway intersections with the Terang-Mortlake and Old Peterborough roads is expected to start before Christmas using $765,000 from the federal government and $255,000 from the state government.
Turning lanes will be added to improve access and safety.
It will provide better a alternative to the Cobden-Terang Road which has been used as a truck route.
Corangamite Shire Council mayor Chris O’Connor said there had been many calls for improvements.
“Traffic has sometimes had to bank up behind trucks turning off the highway,” he said.
“We have been trying to expand the industrial estate area, so these roads improvements will be a big help.
“I don’t think anyone in early planning envisaged the increase in truck size and volume using these intersections.”
Deputy Prime Minister and Infrastructure and Regional Development Minister Warren Truss said about 6000 vehicles travelled on the Princes Highway through Terang each day, including about 500 trucks.
“Heavy vehicles in this area rely on the route through town, so productivity gains of this project will directly support the region’s economy,” he said.
Victorian Roads Minister Terry Mulder said the regional freight initiative was providing “unprecedented” investment in the state’s road network to improve productivity.
Federal member for Wannon Dan Tehan said the upgrade and heavy-vehicle route change would improve safety for all motorists.
Cr O’Connor said he hoped the next funding announcement would be for the badly-damaged Foxhow Road section which needed $7m to upgrade it to a heavy-duty dual-lane carriageway.