Towns in the Wimmera are set to be safer with the installation of special eye-catching signs and road markings over the next few months.
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Stawell is among 37 towns that are set to have their entrances upgraded by the end of July, with Great Western to follow between September and December.
The works are part of a larger, state-wide gateways project designed to reduce speeds, increase driver attention and boost safety for all road users.
Minister for Roads and Road Safety Ben Carroll said the road markings and striking red, green, and white speed signs at town entrances provide a strong visual reminder to drivers they need to slow down.
Gateway upgrades have already been installed at the entrances of almost 170 towns in regional Victoria since 2019.
OTHER NEWS:
Similar community gateway treatments have already reduced crashes by 26 to 35 per cent in New Zealand towns, a spokesman for the Victorian government said.
The initiative is part of the Victorian Government's Victoria's Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030, which aims to reduce road trauma across the state.
According to a Victorian government statement, the strategy sets out to "significantly reduce serious injuries by 2030 and sets us on a path to zero road deaths by 2050".
Gateways are to be installed in towns where the speed limit drops by at least 20km/h or greater and is reduced to 50 or 60km/h upon entering the town.
"Through our investment in better safety infrastructure... we're taking action to increase awareness and visibility on our roads," Mr Carroll said.
The works at Rainbow and Great Western between September and December are part of the joint Victorian, and Commonwealth government funded Road Safety Program.
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Alex Blain
I am a general news/sports journalist with the Wimmera Mail-Times in Horsham. My work has appeared in the Age, the Geelong Advertiser, the Australian, the Jakarta Globe and across the airwaves on Radio Australia.
I am a general news/sports journalist with the Wimmera Mail-Times in Horsham. My work has appeared in the Age, the Geelong Advertiser, the Australian, the Jakarta Globe and across the airwaves on Radio Australia.
