16:51 Andy Taylor: Good afternoon, Moosa Council. Sorry, excuse me. My name is Andy Taylor and I stand here on behalf of a group of concerned residents who rely on Cooroy Mountain Road, the gravel section, every single day. We are here because our road is unsafe. And despite years of raising these issues, we have been told by various council representatives that our road is not a priority. But for us, it is not only a priority, it is a matter of safety, fairness and responsibility.
17:26 The road was originally approved for upgrade in 2013 by the Sunshine Coast Council. And I quote, to improve road safety. Since that time, 12 years ago, traffic conditions have obviously substantially increased. From 2013 to present, under the Noosa Council, our road has been totally moored with absolutely no funding provided for gravel road upgrading for the last 10 plus years. And no further funding until 2032. That is 19 years of complete inaction.
18:06 There has been a huge change in population and usage of this road since 2013. Our road links two rapidly growing areas, being Cooroy and Dunhamton. And in recent years, the impact of this population growth has highlighted the immediate and well overdue need for our road to be upgraded to a compliant standard. The gravel section of Cooroy Mountain Road is steep, narrow, winding. Loose gravel, blind corners. Erosion from rain makes it treacherous. Dust pollutes our air and our drinking water. The speed limit of 100 kilometres an hour allows for dangerous and reckless driving by irresponsible and careless people.
18:55 This is not just a minor inconvenience. This is a dangerous road that has been overlooked for far too long. This is not just a minor inconvenience. Because Council has not taken steps to assess and act, we the residents engaged our own independent RPEQ Credential Engineers, Colliers International Engineering and Design Pty Ltd. We have provided you a copy of our report on the 6th of May. Our report highlights the current condition and the many deficiencies of our road. Our engineers report also offers cost effective solutions to bring our road up to compliance. In my email I offered to meet and discuss the report with you and I have not heard back from you since.
19:44 Our engineers find it clear, and in particular we note, the road fails to meet modern safety standards and design standards. Our road fails to meet the requirements of the IPWEA assessment guidelines. That's the Institute of Public Works and Engineering Australia.
20:03 Where any score over 20 means the road must be sealed, our score today is 44.
20:11 Without doubt this confirms our road is entirely overdue for sealing. One other very concerning result is that 20% of our traffic are heavy vehicles. This is an extremely high average for our classification of the road. Heavy vehicles dramatically add to the health, safety and environmental risk of what is already a standard road.
20:37 When a community has to fund its own engineering report just to be heard, something is seriously wrong. To then have this report ignored is unacceptable.
20:49 I reaffirm to you today my ongoing offer to engage and discuss this issue with you
20:54 Deputy Mayor Stockwell: directly.
20:56 Andy Taylor: I would like to thank all of you for your support. This isn't just an abstract issue. This is about real people. Our road is constantly used by walkers, cyclists and horse riders. Both local residents and many surrounding looser people regularly use Coromant Road. Local commuters use our road as a convenient shortcut. Family isn't heading home after dark on a very dark and dangerous road. The entire group that I am representing today have used our road as a convenient shortcut. There are numerous stories of near misses. Accidents, dangerous conditions and the ever increasing dust, erosion and environmental damage due to poor condition of the road. Each journey carries unnecessary risk. We fear it is only a matter of time before we face the preventable tragedy of a serious accident. And when that happens, the question won't be a council view. It will be why a council chose not to act. And when that happens, the question won't be a council view. Councils. Safety is your duty. Your responsibility is not only to balance budgets but to safeguard residences. The message we've received that our road is not a priority is unacceptable.
22:12 We are ratepayers. We contribute. And we deserve the same level of facilities, safety and respect as any other community in the Noosa Shire. We're calling on council to 1. Immediately prioritise our road. Prioritise safety upgrades to the grammar section of Cooroy Mount Road. 2. Allocate funds for sealing and remediation in the upcoming budget. 3. Publish a transparent timeline for works with progress updates to the community. These are not unreasonable requests. They are common sense measures to protect lives.
22:52 Councils. We are not here today to complain. We are here to urge action. The time for deferring, delaying and dismissing is over. Cooroy Mount Road is dangerous. It must be fixed. And we are asking you today to commit to make it safe before tragedy forces your hand. Thank you.
23:16 Mayor Wilkie: Thank you, Mr Taylor. And if you're going to be here during the break, we'll catch up with you.