Which Victorian country MPs support integrity in road funding?
Independent political candidates in Victoria are continuing to back the AAA’s My Safety Counts campaign, calling on next Federal Government use road safety ratings to guide road investment to projects that can save the most lives.
But only three out of 13 regional Victoria sitting federal MPs support publishing road safety data, according to a report published today in Australian Community Media (ACM) newspapers.
State governments collect detailed safety ratings on individual roads prepared under the protocols of the Australian Road Assessment Program (AusRAP). But this data is not made public.
“In the past month, the federal government has also announced billions in road funding for Victoria, with Melbourne to get 19 times more than the rest of the state,” ACM journalist Ben Silvester wrote.
“The lopsided ‘cash splash’ has prompted demands from several regional politicians to publish the data for the roads getting funding.”
ACM asked every regional Victorian federal MP – as well as four candidates in marginal seats – whether they supported revealing the secret AusRAP ratings.
Three MPs said yes – Dan Tehan (Liberal, Wannon), Anne Webster (Nationals, Mallee), and Helen Haines (Independent, Indi).
Two candidates – Alex Dyson (Independent, Wannon) and Paula Doran (Liberal, Ballarat) – also agreed, the report said. They join independents outside Victoria, including Senator David Pocock (ACT) and the candidates for Forrest (WA) Dr Sue Chapman and Whitlam (NSW) Paddy Moylan, who have also backed the proposed reform.
All other Victorian MPs approached by ACM declined to state a position. These included Labor’s Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles (Corio), Transport Minister Catherine King (Ballarat), Lisa Chesters (Bendigo), Sam Rae (Hawke), Libby Coker (Corangamite) and Rob Mitchell (McEwen); Nationals Darren Chester (Gippsland) and Sam Birrell (Nicholls); Liberal Jason Wood (La Trobe); and independent Russell Broadbent (Monash).
Liberal candidate Mary Aldred (Monash) and National candidate Andrew Lethlean (Bendigo) also declined to answer the media inquiry, the report said.
AusRAP ratings take into account factors such as road condition, shoulder width, hazards and line marking to produce a score of one to five stars. A five-star road is the safest, while a one-star road is the most dangerous.
Each additional star halves the risk of death or serious injury for a person travelling on that section of road. This means a one-star road is 16 times riskier than a five-star road.
Australian Community Media publishes more than 160 regional newspapers and websites, including the Warrnambool Standard, the Ballarat Courier, the Bendigo Advertiser and the Border Mail.