Great Eastern Highway between Northam and Mundaring is like Jekyll and Hyde. Between Mundaring and the Lakes, dual carriageway, safe no accidents. Between the Lakes and Northam, single carriageway, dangerous with many accidents and fatalities.
The dual carriageway goes several hundred metres past the Lakes, indicating a future extension was planned. However the fabled Orange route raised its head creating a real catch 22 situation.
Any move to extend the dual carriageway has been met with "the Orange Route will fix all of that".
So true, but the Orange Route is all brand new and cannot be staged, making it extremely expensive; so dear that it can only be funded by a very large federal grant.
It all shows some very muddled forward planning; in accepting the Orange route state planners who endorsed the dual carriageway to the Lakes have changed their minds and now support the Orange Route, meaning that the investment in the dual carriageway to the Lakes is to become a dual carriageway to nowhere.
Every time the dual carriageway is raised, the state transport minister says "the Orange Route is the go, go to the Feds for funding" neatly sidestepping the issue and putting the onus on the Federal Government, who in turn say "it's too dear you can't have it".
Each time the road toll on the Lakes to Northam section is raised, there is a "renewed interest in the Orange Route" leading to the whole charade being replayed and the fatalities continuing.
Please Minister, don't hide, make the Orange route happen or fix the Lakes to Northam road!
Denis Beresford, a Northam local of 60 years and former councillor for 30 years.
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