Ringwood: Cafe owner claims Maroondah Hwy intersection has become speeding hotspot

The death of an elderly man on a notorious stretch of road in Ringwood has locals begging for something to be done to improve safety.

TLC Espresso Ringwood owner Lyndon Rist is concerned about speeding drivers outside his shop. Picture: Kiel Egging.

A Ringwood cafe owner is concerned drivers are hooning through a 40 km/h speed zone in the heart of the suburb, putting pedestrians at serious risk.

TLC Espresso owner Lyndon Rist has spoken of the chaotic scenes on Maroondah Highway near Wantirna Rd following a fatal accident last month.

A 74-year-old man was crossing the highway, near Mr Rist’s shop and the former Dakota nightclub site, when he was struck by a Ford Explorer about 11.20am on March 5.

He suffered serious injuries and was taken to hospital but died on March 27.

It is unclear if the man was using the road’s pedestrian crossing.

Mr Rist said he and a customer rushed to check out the scene and started diverting traffic around the incident.

“I heard a huge bang … there was a lady getting out of the car who was hysterical in the middle of the road, and there was a gentleman who was trapped underneath the car,” he said.

“We pushed it off him and he was pretty banged up.

“All the guys from The Sebel (hotel) came out and it was a really good community effort with everyone helping until the emergency services arrived.”

Mr Rist said he feared drivers were not taking notice of the low speed limit on the busy stretch of the road, particularly in the outbound lanes towards EastLink.

He said it would be “nice” to have police monitoring conditions more often.

“If the police sat here in the morning when I’m opening my shop at 6am, they would have a field day booking people,” he said.

“Once the light goes green up at Wantirna Rd, it’s pedal to the metal sometimes.”

“It’s already 40 (km/h), you can’t go down any lower, but we’ll see what happens.”

Readers had their say on the intersection and other local ones they felt were dangerous on Maroondah Leader’s Facebook page.

Andrea Arnett said: “I don’t feel safe crossing at that intersection these days. I no longer go that way and I am saddened to hear there was a fatality there.

But Corali Duncan disagreed, writing: “I live about 200m from this intersection and I have never seen an accident or injury here.”

The driver of the Explorer, a 33-year-old Mooroolbark woman, and her two passengers were not injured in the incident.

Victoria Police spokeswoman Nikki Ladsgrove said the driver was interviewed over the incident and released without charge.

Maroondah highway patrol officers have been contacted for comment.