State Member for Shepparton Kim O’Keeffe drove home from Melbourne on that night and said she witnessed at least seven cars pulled over on the Goulburn Valley Hwy between Nagambie and Shepparton.
“I was literally terrified,” Ms O’Keeffe said.
“It’s out of control.”
Ms O’Keeffe said her office was frequently contacted about the condition of the roads.
“Every time I’m in parliament I feel like I’m talking about roads.”
Ms O’Keeffe recalled a case from December 2022 where a motorcyclist died after hitting a pothole in Kaarimba and said she was concerned about the potential for an accident to occur.
“If a pothole is going to take a life, that’s one life too many,” Ms O’Keeffe said.
After her experience, Ms O’Keeffe contacted Transport Victoria, which told her that it was able to address smaller potholes within 24 to 48 hours; however, larger areas of damage took longer to address.
Over 600 people responded to a Facebook post from The News about the potholes, with many sharing their stories of blown tyres and thousands of dollars spent on repairs.
Multiple commenters echoed concerns about the potential for major accidents and fatalities.
Regional roads have been deteriorating for some time, with Regional Cities Victoria calling for a $2 billion repair package in April.
During a recent visit to Shepparton, Coalition leaders Jess Wilson and Danny O’Brien spoke about the lack of funding for regional infrastructure.
In the 2025-26 state budget, only 12 per cent of capital spending went to regional Victoria, where 25 per cent of the state’s population lives.
Mr O’Brien said that when he travelled along the Hume Hwy and the Goulburn Valley Hwy, he noticed the poor condition of the road surfaces.
“They are in an absolutely appalling state, we need to get our roads fixed,” Mr O’Brien said.
“Our roads are goat tracks at the moment and people are paying the price.”
Mr O’Brien promised that the Coalition’s road policy would be announced in the coming weeks and that it would include more money, as well as a focus on preventative maintenance.
Ms Wilson said that she and Mr O’Brien had seen people on the side of the road changing tyres during their tour.
“Yesterday, I was driving up the Hume, and we were driving from Mangalore to Creightons Creek and there were literally craters in the middle of the Hume Hwy,” Ms Wilson said.
State Member for Northern Victoria Jaclyn Symes said that the Victorian government has invested nearly $2 billion in the state’s roads over the past two years, with 70 per cent dedicated to regional roads.
"This is the biggest roads blitz in the state's history – we're fixing more potholes than last year and delivering more complex rebuilding and rehabilitation works to strengthen roads for the long term,“ Ms Symes said.
Drivers can report road hazards to VicRoads on 131 170.
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