F4 Tollway Properties Access

About this Item
Speakers - Scully Mr Carl; Yabsley Mr Michael
Business - Private Members Statements

F4 TOLLWAY PROPERTIES ACCESS

Mr SCULLY (Smithfield) [5.38]: I raise a matter on behalf of Mr and Mrs Walker of 4 Barfil Crescent, South Wentworthville and also the residents of Barfil Crescent and the section of Rawson Road north of the F4 roadworks. This area consists
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of about 25 homes. As a result of the work on the F4 tollway - which is known locally as the Greiner cash register - these residents have become effectively road locked. I am pleased that the former Minister for Corrective Services is in the Chamber, for he will know what it is like to be locked up. These people have expressed great concern about their present situation because of the roadworks being undertaken on the F4 tollway. The residents who voiced their complaints and problems have been treated with disdain and contempt by the Roads and Traffic Authority and the Minister. The level of common courtesy shown by the Roads and Traffic Authority to these unfortunate residents is a disgrace.

The notice of closure of Rawson Road was first stuck on a telegraph pole, picked up from the gutter by a local butcher, and then given to one of my constituents when he happened to be buying some meat. No notices were letterboxed and no letters were sent to these residents. The closure of Rawson Road has effectively locked these residents between the six-lane Great Western Highway and the road works on the Greiner cash register. This closure has severely reduced the quality of life of the residents. Numerous shops and services on Old Prospect Road once could be reached by a short walk up Rawson Road. Now residents are required to walk for 30 minutes along the Great Western Highway, Cumberland Highway and then Old Prospect Road. Residents who wish to catch a bus to Parramatta experience the same problem. It used to be a short walk to the station; now it is a half-hour hike. A number of residents are elderly or have young children and are not up to this hike. It has been suggested that a pedestrian overpass be constructed over the F4 tollway, but this has been rejected as prohibitively expensive. I urge the Minister for State Development and Minister for Tourism, who is at the table, to raise this with the responsible Minister. I believe that this overpass would be used by a substantial number of people, not just those living in that area. It would be used as an access point by pedestrians walking along the footpath of the Great Western Highway and wishing to go to those shops on Old Prospect Road.

The other problem is that road users in Rawson Road and Barfield Crescent now find it extremely difficult to get in and out of their residences. What was once a simple exercise of driving down Old Prospect Road and into Rawson Road is now an absurd trip down Cumberland Highway, Old Prospect Road, the Great Western Highway and into Rawson Road. A right-hand turn for east-bound traffic travelling down the Great Western Highway has been suggested, but the Roads and Traffic Authority has rejected that proposal, saying that it would not be safe. If that is the case - and I accept that that may be a possibility - I urge the Minister at least to consider, when the tollway is opened and the traffic on the Great Western Highway is severely reduced, constructing a right-hand turn to allow residents more direct access to their homes. An alternative to that proposal is that a laneway access point be constructed along Old Prospect Road between the proposed F4 tollway and the rear of the properties owned by my constituents in that part of Rawson Road and Barfield Crescent. I am not sure how that access would be restricted to residents only, but that would be a possible solution.

But this is not enough; there is more. The Roads and Traffic Authority promised a man-proof fence but constructed a five-foot wire fence only two feet from
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the rear of my constituents' property, which allows intruders to climb into their properties. In the case of Mr and Mrs Walker, that has already occurred. Trail bikes are often in use after hours. They cause great noise and nuisance to my constituents. I request that the RTA or the Statewide Roads company patrol that area and expel these louts from that area. The dust from roadworks is intolerable, particularly on windy days in this dry weather. A water truck is used on a number of occasions, but this is more of an apology than a serious attempt to reduce the problem. Statewide Roads should also improve that situation. These residents are getting a raw deal. It is unfortunate that they are in this situation. I visited the area to see how bad it was. To see these two major highways locking these residents in and leaving them without access to major roads, buses and shops is not good enough.

Mr YABSLEY (Vaucluse), Minister for State Development and Minister for Tourism [5.43]: I will certainly undertake to convey to the Deputy Premier, Minister for Public Works and Minister for Roads the concerns expressed by the honourable member for Smithfield. I certainly want to make sure that no residents are disadvantaged by activities undertaken by the Roads and Traffic Authority. As a former Minister for Corrective Services and a former Minister for Roads, I had a lot to do with roads and the Roads and Traffic Authority. I always found that at every level the authority went out of its way to make sure that it consulted with local residents. If what the honourable member for Smithfield is saying is true - anything coming from the honourable member for Smithfield always has a question mark over it - I would find it to be, at the very least, out of character for the Roads and Traffic Authority, particularly knowing the quality of people operating there at senior levels of management. Nevertheless, even if the residents whom the member is talking about are unfortunate enough to be represented by him, we will do our best to make sure that the problem is rectified.

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