East coast bureaucrats have made the wrong call on a project they don’t understand | Lynton Grace

When eventually a big bushfire threatens Mount Barker, people will get trapped on that bridge, writes Lynton Grace.

If you’re going to allow developers to build thousands of new homes in a big country town, you’d better be ready to stump up the cash when the traffic problems start.

A year ago, The Advertiser reported Mount Barker was on track to be the state’s second-largest city, with figures showing it had its second-biggest growth year on record.

New housing developments in surrounding towns such as Nairne and Littlehampton are sprouting like mushrooms.

But – as anyone who lives or drives through Mt Barker knows – the roads haven’t kept up.

Today, the federal government crushed dreams of upgrades, scrapping the $250m Hahndorf Township Improvement program and several other Hills road upgrades.

The $45m Mount Barker freeway interchange upgrade was cut, as was the Verdun interchange upgrade near Hahndorf.

Yes, you could argue some of those dumped projects were minor or ones Hills dwellers can probably wait longer for.

But the Mount Barker decision was stupid, shortsighted and dangerous.

This was a decision made by shortsighted bureaucrats on the other side of the country who just looked at a list of numbers.

With its on and off ramps, that bridge over the freeway links Littlehampton and the industrial area of Totness with Mt Barker and is already clogged and problematic.

Choose a right-hand turn at 8.30am or 5.15pm and you can wait for a very long time. People take risks, cutting in front of huge trucks and buses, or roar up lines of traffic and cut in front of drivers.

Earlier in the year, a Milang man tragically died when his car crashed into a tree near the on-ramp. It caused hours of delays and traffic banked up 2km.

A Milang man has died in a crash in Mt Barker near the freeway on-ramp. Picture: 7NEWS

Where Mount Barker meets the freeway is one of SA’s biggest traffic snarls. Picture: Tricia Watkinson

When there’s a bushfire – not if, when – that bridge will become the bottleneck that traps people fleeing. It could easily end in someone dying.

In August, the state government was forced to step in and help fund a level crossing that wasn’t built by developers, another example of poor planning.

Meanwhile. the state’s most remote areas will still see their projects completed. Sealing the Strzelecki track and a Stuart Highway upgrade in the APY Lands are both going ahead with a combined budget of $289m.

These cuts will hold back a region that was forced to grow before it was ready – and desperately needs

Transport Minister Tom Koutsantonis today dodged the question of the Mount Barker upgrade and said it “belong squarely at the feet of the Commonwealth government”.

Sure. But we need an answer. You can’t force a town to grow before it’s ready.