Dangerous section of Wollaston Road to get $300,000 redesign

Warrnambool City Council will spent up to $300,000 redesigning a section of Walls to Caramut roads in readiness for works to be given the green light.

The council has written agreements in place with the developers of housing estates along Wollaston Road to deliver upgrades or contribute to roadworks when a certain number of housing lots are built on.

"To enable the project to be ready for construction, council officers have commenced the process to appoint a design consultant to undertake design works on Wollaston Road," the council said.

In recent years, there has been a number of accidents around the sharp bend on Wollaston Road, and in response the speed limit was lowered to 60km/h.

In approving the design spend, Cr Richard Ziegeler said Wollaston Road was a "rapidly increasing thoroughfare" with each housing development adding to the busy road.

"The development of that particular stretch of road is being outstripped by the developments surrounding it and I we think it was about time that we actually faced towards it and improve it and bring it up to scratch/ And this tender is another step in that direction," Cr Ziegeler said.

Cr Max Taylor said vehicle traffic and housing projects had increased dramatically in the area over the past decade.

But he said the section of Wollaston Road, from Walls Road to Caramut Road, had not changed in the past 50 years.

"This is well overdue," Cr Taylor said.

Cr Vicki Jellie said that because of the siting the new Merri River School on the road, as well as the extra housing estates, she looked forward to the development of the road being completed.

Cr Otha Akoch said he hoped the works on Wollaston Road could help ease the traffic congestion on Mortlake Road.

During the council elections last year, Cr Akoch called for a planned new bridge over the Merri River to be fast-tracked to link Bromfield Street with the burgeoning new northern housing estates.

"A new Special Development School (SDS) has been constructed in that estate, but it has no direct link into the city centre," he said at the time.

"We've got an ever-increasing volume of traffic flow clogging Mortlake Road into and out of the city.

"This proposed bridge would ease that congestion and help parents with children at the SDS.

"It's time to bring that bridge project forward. Not only would it improve traffic flow, but also boost jobs and investment."

The new bridge has been included in the South of the Merri Precinct plan, but with the costs on replacing the South Warrnambool bridge blowing out to $4.6 million this week, a new bridge in an area that was subject to major flooding last year could be even more costly.

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