Port Phillip Council delays Albert Park ’rat run’ safety upgrade
Safety upgrades at a notorious Albert Park intersection where a prang caused a car to plough through the window of a cafe have stalled after a group of residents complained the changes would add just minutes to their morning commute.
Inner South
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Long-awaited safety upgrades at a “messy” Albert Park intersection have stalled after a band of residents complained the planned measures were “inconvenient”.
The intersection on Kerferd Rd — between Montague and Herbert streets — is used as a rat run daily by motorists keen to avoid the six sets of traffic lights along Ferrars St/Canterbury Rd or the series of roundabouts and speed bumps on Richardson St.
There have been 39 accidents recorded on Kerferd Rd in the five years to 2019, including 23 at the Montague and Herbert streets junction.
Three crashes have been recorded at the site since June this year.
One resident, who did not want to be named, said cars “fly through there at outrageous speeds”.
“You only have to stand on the corner for three or four minutes and you’ll see about a dozen near misses,” he said.
“It takes a car doing 40km/h about 20 seconds to drive down Herbert St but I see cars zooming down there in 12 seconds.”
The notorious intersection made the news in 2013 when a car clipped another vehicle and ploughed through the window of a cafe, narrowly missing diners who scrambled to safety.
No one was seriously injured in the crash.
That same year, a petition calling for safety improvements garnered 117 signatures from residents in nearby streets.
Herbert St resident Chris Wallis said the problem had only got worse in the seven years since the first petition was tabled.
“A few years ago there were no kids living in Herbert St, now there’s plenty and two new schools in the area with kids trying to cross Kerferd Rd to get to them — they’ve got no chance,” he said.
Following a second petition this year, Port Phillip Council voted for an 18-month trial of safety upgrades at the site, including closing the road through the median strip.
The trial would be funded by the State Government as part of its ‘Shrine to Sea’ project, which runs from St Kilda Rd to Beaconsfield Pde and includes Kerferd Rd.
The $13 million project aims to connect the Domain Gardens with Port Phillip Bay, improving the safety and experience for people walking and bike riding along this corridor.
But chief executive Peter Smith confirmed the council had put the trial on the backburner following a counter-petition, which complained about lack of consultation and “inconvenience to residents”.
He said the matter would be considered by the new council following this month’s elections.
Mr Wallis said the counter-petition showed “classic NIMBY symptoms”.
“People are more worried about it taking 30 seconds longer to get to the shops than safety,” he said.
“Having admitted there’s a safety issue and committing to a (trial) remedy, Port Phillip Council can only hope no one is injured at the intersection while it dithers.”
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