Cessnock Electorate Roads

Mr KERRY HICKEY (Cessnock) [6.10 p.m.]: I bring to the attention of the House my concern about road funding in the Pokolbin vineyard area. For a long time the road system in this area has been in need of major repairs and is deteriorating rapidly. The state of the roads is causing major concern for all tourist destinations and vineyards as well as cellar door operations throughout the Pokolbin vineyard area. The Government has funded the Cessnock council with a regional road program, but it is a bit like putting one's hand in a bucket of water and pulling it out to see how much of a dent has been made. Each year the council upgrades a small section of road but it does not have any impact because by the time of the next round of funding the upgrade has deteriorated. Brogue Road from the airport corner of Wine Country Drive along to the Twin Towers Estate is in an appalling condition. It is the main entrance into the Pokolbin vineyard area.

There have been reports of people losing their false teeth while driving along this road and other reports of car tyres being destroyed by rough surfaces and potholes. The condition of the road surface is getting worse by the day. The local council is trying as much as possible to fund the rebuilding of many of these roads in the vineyard areas, which have the most potential for employment opportunities in the Cessnock local government area. As the local member I have constantly written to successive Roads ministers, who continually reply in terms of how much money the Government has spent on regional road components for the local council. All of that is well and good, but the impact on tourism is extreme, to say the very least. Every member of the Hunter wine sector has at sometime raised this issue with me and is concerned about the impact upon tourism across the vineyard area. When one looks at the figures of visitations to the vineyards one sees that more than 2 million tourists visit the Cessnock electorate and the vineyards each year, so if those roads are not repaired to a suitable level the impact on tourism and related employment will be immense.

Council has raised its concern about the lack of road funding with me as the local member, considering the large amount of employment that is created by the vineyards for the local area and the regional communities. Constituents have damaged their vehicles as a result of the condition of the roads and it stands to reason that tourists' vehicles also sustain damage. We need to address the safety issues created by poor roads. We know that the movement of tractors, trailers and picking equipment is made more difficult by the shoddy condition of the road surfaces, which also creates a major problem for motorists, including tourists. A whole of government approach is needed. The Minister for Roads, the Minister for Tourism and the Treasurer need to work together to devise a plan that addresses the deterioration of the roads in this area. The Federal Government collects a considerable amount of money from the wine equalisation tax.

The regional roads program is good but does not address this issue sufficiently. Tourists have to use these roads. We need to adopt a whole of government perspective so that the council can repair all the roads rather than just bits and pieces. At present 100 yards of road are being repaired, which is all well and good, but by the next round of funding those 100 yards of repaired road will have deteriorated. The roads were built in the horse and cart days of the nineteenth century when the vineyards were established. The roads have been impacted by more than 2 million visits per annum, and that number is growing each year. The attractions of the area are publicised, but many Sydney people who visit it are not used to the condition of country roads. This matter needs to be addressed with a whole of government approach.

Ms SONIA HORNERY (Wallsend—Parliamentary Secretary) [6.15 p.m.]: I support the quest of the member for Cessnock for better roads for Cessnock. I grew up in the Cessnock electorate and the wineries are wonderful. They attract a lot of tourism to the Hunter yet so little is spent by all levels of government—State, Federal and local—on roads. I support his quest for more money to be spent in this great tourism spot. If people who visit the area have to drive on inferior roads they may not return. We want tourism in the Hunter, so let us improve the roads in the Cessnock region for the member for Cessnock, for the people of the area, and for tourists.