Caravan park owner hopeful after Road Safety Minister visit

Waterloo Village Caravan Park owner Greg Homer says he has hope the speed limit on a stretch of South Western Highway will be lowered after speaking with politicians.

Mr Homer jumped at the chance to speak with Road Safety Minister Michelle Roberts and Collie-Preston MLA Mick Murray last week about concerns regarding a 3km section of the highway.

“They were tremendous and I appreciated that they actually took the time to front up to listen to us,” he said.

“They were sympathetic to what I was telling them and Mick said he was well aware of the hazards in this particular neck of the woods.

“It was also a wonderful opportunity to speak with Minister Roberts because obviously she has a little bit more of an ability to place pressure on agencies that can make changes.”

Ms Roberts said it was always good to hear from people first hand when they raised issues.

“While there has been some road improvements in the area, at 100km/h, it is still a high speed zone,” she said.

“I will raise these concerns with police and the Road Safety Commission and seek further advice about what might be done on that section of road.”

A spokeswoman for Main Roads said recently the stretch of highway was not of particular concern and that speed had not been a factor in crashes reported in the area.

“While Main Roads are saying they are happy with how things are, we now have people representing us at that level,” Mr Homer said.

“They can say to them that despite your statistics saying it’s OK, the people that reside there need a change and we support them to get that change.”

Mr Murray said that as traffic flow on the stretch of road increased he was willing to advocate for further improvement.

“I’m pleased that Minister Roberts will do her part within the appropriate departments to see what else can be done for these residents,” he said.