#FixVicRoads: P-platers take a stand against ‘scary, stressful’ road conditions in Mount Martha
New P-platers Lucy and Ollie are taking back roads on their way home to avoid huge potholes up main streets. They say the road to independence shouldn’t be this dangerous. WATCH THE VIDEO
Victoria
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P-platers are seven times more likely to be involved in a fatal or serious injury crash at night than those with their full license.
But for Lucy Walker-Peel and Ollie Featherston, both 18, the deteriorating roads in Mornington Peninsula have made an already dangerous learning curve even more treacherous.
The couple said while the state government was finally fixing the larger roads in the area, local thoroughfares maintained by Mornington Peninsula Council left them “scared” and white-knuckling the wheel every time they drove to each other’s houses.
“I drive on these roads everyday to uni, to the shops, to see my friends — it’s always scary, it’s always stressful,” Ms Walker-Peel said.
“I’m studying, I’m trying to save money, and I already have to think about getting new tyres. It’s an extra worry and more stress.”
Ms Walker-Peel said one of the busiest roads through town, Uralla Rd, had become “one of the most dangerous” with a series of “unavoidable” potholes regularly reopening through its blind corners.
Fearing a head-on collision, Mr Featherston said he had resorted to taking back roads on his way to his girlfriend’s house for a safer trip.
“I’m spending longer on the road as a P-plater, which I don’t really want to be doing,” he said.
“Driving that just to get up here, it’s dangerous, it’s bumpy … We have to avoid other people swerving out of their lanes from these potholes.
“It just makes it more dangerous for us as new learners on the roads.”
Mornington Shire Council manages more than 1730km of local roads, including both sealed and unsealed roads.
Mornington Shire Council mayor Cr Anthony Marsh said he understood the community’s frustration with the condition of Uralla Road.
“This year, we delivered more than 159,700 square metres of resurfacing and almost 20,000 square metres of patching across 35 local roads,” he said.
“We have another ambitious program planned for next financial year.
“Council has significantly increased its annual investment in road renewal, and Uralla Road has been prioritised for resealing in 2025/26.”
But Ms Walker-Peel said it was hard to trust the promise after so many years of temporary fixes.
“I’ve lived here pretty much my whole life — it’s horrible,” she said.
“There’s so many near-accidents further up, my tyre pressure is so bad, I keep getting warnings.
“Where it really matters, we don’t see anything.”
Join the Herald Sun’s Fix Victorian Roads movement by using the hashtag #FixVicRoads on social media.
Originally published as #FixVicRoads: P-platers take a stand against ‘scary, stressful’ road conditions in Mount Martha
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