I am very concerned that building the ‘Kirrawee footbridge’ across the Princes Highway is a terrible mistake for the following reasons.
The main source of pedestrians crossing the highway is from people heading home from Kirrawee station, along Oak road and then across the Princes highway pedestrian lights and to their home in the surrounding residential area.
To utilise the ‘Bridge’, they would have to walk approximately 500 metres, cross Bath Road, a busy, unpredictable and dangerous crossing, to access the ‘Bridge’ entrance. The same would apply when exiting the ‘Bridge’, making a risky crossing across Bath road and walking 500 metres to Kirrawee station or to the Southside Village complex entrance. People and children crossing busy Bath Road face a potentially fatal danger.
It is illogical and, in my opinion, silly to locate the ‘Bridge’ so far from its main source of pedestrians.
A tunnel under the road could be constructed at the most optimum and logical position and not 500 metres down the road.
I can imagine some people climbing over the median strip fence on the highway to take a short cut home or to go to McDonalds across the road, rather than walking 500 metres down the road and then back again to McDonalds. People dining at “The Prince” hotel are far more likely to drive to it and utilise their parking lot, rather than walking 500 metres to and from their car. This would also apply to Bunnings clientele. People at South Village are more likely to visit McDonalds directly opposite South Village and would not appreciate walking 500 metre to the ‘Bridge’ and then back again. It would be ridiculous.
The logical and obviously common-sense use of a tunnel, under the highway, would solve all the above negatives and eliminate the potential danger to people, especially children, crossing Bath Road where it meets the highway, to get to the ‘Bridge’.
Bill Ilkin,
Princes Highway,Kirrawee.
