Angela Crawford
Residents of Kyneton South fear a pedestrian or cyclist will be struck by a vehicle and killed due to a lack of footpaths safely connecting the area to the train station.
The residents have lobbied the council for a footpath on Trentham Road for almost 10 years but have now been told it is not considered a priority.
Local Neil Pharaoh said that in 2021, more than 70 locals met with councillors and council officers to discuss strategies to improve the safety of pedestrians and cyclists travelling to the railway station.
“Having a designated town growth area with no pedestrian, cycling or other access is a disaster waiting to happen,” Mr Pharaoh said.
“Council has been asleep at the wheel around Kyneton South, designating it a growth area but with no masterplan and no planning for footpaths.
“Whereas other growth corridors in the shire have had heavy investments, council is running out of excuses for a project started in 2016 but never finished.
“Lives will be lost as residents need to walk along a major 100km/h road to get to the station and town – there is no alternative access.”
Council’s director of assets and operations, Shane Walden, said the council’s feasibility assessment for footpaths south of the rail line had identified several engineering challenges and a cost estimate of more than $1 million (more than council’s annual footpath budget).
“(This project) is a low priority when compared with other footpath needs within the shire and given the small population catchment the footpath would likely serve,” he said.
“Council recognises the need to consider Kyneton South in a broader sustainable transport network analysis.
“This work is currently under way as part of the Kyneton Movement Network Study, expected to be completed by the end of the 2023/24 financial year.”
Mr Walden said completing the Kyneton Movement Network Study and the Kyneton Urban Design Framework would help inform and ultimately progress the Kyneton South Framework Plan, which council put on hold in December 2019.
