Victoria’s Surf Coast Shire Council has temporarily suspended its Road Management Plan to prioritise response to a large volume of flood-damaged roads, paths, bridges, landslips and fallen trees in the local government area.
Heavy rainfall and storms during the past two weeks has resulted in significant flooding across the shire, impacting infrastructure and contributing to tree falls, Council said in a statement today.
Since 13 October, Council has received more than 170 requests to repair road and drainage assets damaged by flooding. Increased wind during the past weekend also led to more than 30 requests to respond to large fallen trees.
“Given the volume of damage and the necessary diversion of resources, our Road Management Plan will be suspended until 21 November,” said General Manager Community Life, Gail Gatt.
“This means Council’s capacity to respond to enquiries and call-outs for issues like potholes and other routine road maintenance will be significantly reduced, and target response times in some cases doubled.
“We appreciate people’s understanding and patience as we work through immediate priorities presented by the severe rain and storm events.”
Council’s Road Management Plan sets service standards for tending roads and other road-related assets including kerbs, footpaths, signs, drainage, bridges and vegetation.
Council’s road network comprises 604km of sealed roads and 478km of unsealed roads and tracks.