We’ve received the following comment from a reader and believe it deserves to be highlighted as a separate post. The issues that are raised are significant –

  • To what extent is Council ‘facilitating’ the C60 development with ratepayer funds?
  • How ‘competent’ is the traffic department’s report and when errors are pointed out these are totally ignored? Why?
  • Council’s ‘policy’ states that any traffic calming initiatives must first undergo ‘community consultation’. When 92% of residents in a local street state that suggested works are unnecessary, then why is Council so insistent that the works go ahead?
  • If councillors ‘decided’ to support officers, then again and again we have major governance issues relating to decision making behind closed doors.

 

The Redan Road bicycle lane installation smacks of collusion – everywhere else in the municipality installing bicycle lanes only involves painting a white line on either side of the road and adding some cycling symbols.

Not so Redan Road – it involved
– landscaped traffic calming treatments all along the street and which at one point reduced a wide four lane road to one lane
– a loss of about 15 on street parking spaces (a number of residences are single fronted Victorian/Edwardian that have limited on-site parking capacity and on-street parking is already in high demand) which was disputed by the Glen Eira/O’Brien Traffic Department who claimed only a loss 5)
– 93% of residents signed a petition against it – under the proposal several the landscaped traffic treatments would permanently prevent them from parking within 100 metres of their residence.
– Resident discussions with Ward Councillor/s and the Glen Eira/O’Brien Traffic Engineers proved several of the engineers claims blatantly wrong, described the cost of the installation as a waste of ratepayers money particularly as all residents wanted was a couple of speed humps and the cycling lanes.
– Residents and Councillor/s agreed the speed hump solution would be pursued.
– Residents have now been advised that at the last Councillor Assembly (despite the local law prohibits decisions being made in Assemblies) it was decided to implement the Glen Eira/O’Brien recommendation. No doubt the tactic of letting ward councillors off the hook on contentious issues by non-ward councillors (who have probably never seen the Road) out voting them on the basis of “greater good” for the community is once again being played.

Oh did I forget to mention
. Redan Road, North Caulfield, is an wide angled road (approx. 400 metres in length) that links Balaclava Road with Kambrook Road.
. The Balaclava junction is smack dab across from Caulfield Park next to the controlled Bambra and Balaclava Roads intersection.
. Kambrook Road end is smack dab opposite the MRC’s Caulfield Village’s main Kambrook Road pedestrian access point and that the MRC is going to undertake the installation of pedestrian safety treatments at the Kambrook Road/Redan Road intersection.
. That Redan Road residents do not have a major traffic volume/speed issue since the 40 k/h speed limit and combined the restricted left turn and pedestrian safety refuge (from Kambrook to Redan) was implemented in 2007/2008. Ditto with the Balaclava Road/Redan Road intersection.
. That the Caulfield Village Development Plans focus on Redan Road as a major pedestrian/cycling route to access Caulfield Park and a tram stop that is further away then the Kambrook/Balaclava tram stop.
. How lovely it would be for the Caulfield Village residents to stroll/cycle down a wide, landscaped, tree lined avenue on their way to the already “at capacity” Caulfield Park – not to mention a photo op for the Caulfield Village marketing materials.

No doubt the Redan Road residents are greatly consoled by the fact that their already Caulfield Village impacted amenity will be further reduced by unwanted traffic treatments, that will prevent them from parking near their residences and that are being partly funded from their rates.