Greater Shepparton City Council councillors met with Kialla West Primary School principal Wes Teague, students and parents’ association president Jamie Gilbert to celebrate the announcement.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
More than seven years after a shocking accident that seriously injured a mother and her three daughters, traffic lights will be installed at Kialla West Primary School’s Goulburn Valley Hwy and Cemetery Rd intersection.
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This week’s announcement came as a relief to the school community, which has been advocating for improved safety at the site for more than six years.
Jamie Gilbert has been on the school’s parents’ association for around 15 years and the president for more than a decade.
His youngest child, who is in Year 5, still attends the school.
“There’s relief that there’s finally going to be some safety measures in place that are going to ... make for a much safer environment to cross the road,” Mr Gilbert said.
“We just don’t want any more accidents or near misses or fatalities in relation to anyone, especially our school kids and our families.
“Originally we thought an underpass was the solution, but it turns out it was not the best option.
“People do adhere to traffic lights a lot more than they do to anything else.”
Thousands of vehicles, including many heavy vehicles, travel past the school daily.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
The project is a $4.55 million joint investment under the Road Safety Program, funded equally by the Victorian and federal governments, with an additional $812,000 contributed by Greater Shepparton City Council.
The traffic lights will replace the existing school crossing, improving visibility for pedestrians crossing the highway.
Student pick-up and drop-off zones and school bus services will be relocated to Cemetery Rd to allow children to board and exit vehicles away from highway traffic.
Upgrades will also include expanding the cul-de-sac at the eastern end of Cemetery Rd, enabling vehicles to turn around safely before rejoining the highway.
The new traffic lights are expected to make turning movements into and out of Cemetery Rd safer for drivers.
Additional works will include new footpaths and improvements around the intersection.
A kindergarten that had been scheduled to open at the beginning of this year is now expected to be built this year and open on day one of the first school term next year.
“It’s our understanding that those works should be done together at the same time to minimise disruption to the school network,” Mr Gilbert said.
“If we’re going to disrupt the school network, we might as well do it all at once, that would be our preference.”
The school community is relieved to hear that a safer way to cross the busy highway is finally on its way.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
Kialla West Primary School principal Wes Teague said there would be a drastic increase in traffic at the site once the kindergarten was open.
“Obviously, the timing of this project with the lights taking place is going to add so much safety around the area,” Mr Teague said.
“All schools are busy around pick-up and drop-off time, but the complexity of this location with the highway just adds that extra layer of concern.”
After many years and “a lot of time in meetings” searching for a solution, Mr Teague said, like Mr Gilbert, he was also relieved by the announcement.
“I was just really pleased ... it’s nice to have the resolution confirmed,” he said.
“I’m really proud of the way the school has been supportive of each other, trying to get this outcome.”
Year 6 students Leni Rigby and Imogen Kelly, who both cross the highway on their way to and from school, were excited to hear there would be traffic lights installed.
“Jeff, our crossing man, is really good,” Imogen, 11, said.
“I usually feel safe, but sometimes there’s stupid drivers.”
Leni, 11, agreed.
“I generally feel pretty safe, but I’ve seen people being kind of stupid on the road,” she said.
“When Jeff puts his sign up, some people still go past, but he makes sure we’re safe.”
Construction timing and final plans will be confirmed in the coming months.
