NBN rollout works ‘ripping up’ suburban streets without warning, Kingston Council says

THE NBN rollout is leaving suburban streets “like war zones” with roads, footpaths and nature strips torn apart, a southern Melbourne council has complained.

THE NBN rollout is leaving suburban streets “like war zones” with roads, footpaths and nature strips ripped up, an inner Melbourne council has complained.

Kingston Council also says the NBN contractor responsible is misusing emergency works orders to dodge a formal notification process.

The council’s city assets and environment manager, Daniel Freer, said the council required service providers to notify them every month about the function and location of upcoming works.

“What seems to be the practice is the authority uses an emergency works order to undertake their works immediately without doing the appropriate notifications,” Mr Freer told a recent council meeting.

NEIGHBOURHOODS LEFT DISCONNECTED

YOUR SURVIVAL GUIDE TO THE NBN

TELSTRA FEELING PRESSURE OF NBN ROLLOUT

Cr Georgina Oxley said the first she and her neighbours knew about work in her own street was when contractors arrived at 6.30am one day and started “drilling up the footpath”.

Cr Oxley said all of a sudden, footpaths and roads were dug up, fences damaged, driveways blocked and fire pits blocked by machinery.

“When neighbours came out and asked them to move they were told in more foul language that I can use in this chamber to basically move on,” she said.

She said residents across Carrum, Bonbeach and Chelsea had similar complaints.

The roads and footpaths have since been reinstated in Cr Oxley’s street, but there were still areas in Chelsea, Bonbeach and Carrum that “remain destroyed.”

“According to the NBN (they) will still remain destroyed for another two years until they come back and actually connect the infrastructure they put in,” Cr Oxley said.

Cr David Eden said he had also received complaints from Bonbeach residents about the state of the footpaths after their NBN roll-out commenced.

“It’s like a war zone,” he said.

Cr Eden said some wheelchair users in the area had been forced onto the road.

Cr Oxley said it was time for the council to tell the NBN Co and the Federal Government that the damage from the roll-out was “not acceptable” and the council was not prepared to “foot the bill”.

Mess left by NBN works in Bondi Rd Bonbeach.

“It’s not fair and I think this is the perfect opportunity to tell them we’re not going to stand for it and I think other councils will start to do the same thing,” she said.

The council unanimously voted in support of Cr Oxley and will write to NBN Co and Federal Communications Minister Mitch Fifield seeking an undertaking that damage would be repaired within four weeks – or seven days if the damage presented an immediate danger and a detailed calendar of work in the municipality.

The council also wants residents to be given 48 hours notice of work that would lead to road closures or the prevent access to private property.

NBN spokesman James Kaufman apologised “for any community disruption while we build the nbn broadband access network to over 63,000 premises across the City of Kingston”. “Community disruption can be caused by a number of factors and we are working hard with all of our delivery partners to ensure that the community is kept abreast of planned works and changes to amenity, community space and traffic disruptions,” Mr Kaufman said.
“Works are extensive in City of Kingston at present and we do appreciate the communities patience.”

MORE NEWS

HOW AND WHERE HOUSE FIRES HAPPEN IN MELBOURNE

FIRST HOME-BUYERS NEED TO ‘LOWER EXPECTATIONS’, MAYOR SAYS