Piggott Range Road upgrade to save lives
Published on 24 April 2023
Ahead of Road Safety Week in May, the City of Onkaparinga has announced a critical road safety project for Piggott Range Road, Chandlers Hill.
The project, delivered by the City of Onkaparinga and funded through the Australian Government's Black Spot program, will upgrade a 700 metre section of the road with a history of fatal accidents.
"Residents and road users have raised concerns with us about the prevalence of crashes on this stretch of road, and we're very grateful that federal funding will now allow this upgrade to occur," said Onkaparinga Mayor Moira Were.
"It has been a horror start to the year on our roads with a record road toll to date so we're doing whatever we can to make our roads safer, and we ask our community to remain alert and always drive to the conditions."
"The upgrade will improve the alignment of the curves located on either side of the Easton Road intersection, increase the width of sealed shoulders where possible, provide a protected turn lane for vehicles turning right from Piggott Range Road into Easton Road, and modify the shape of the road to ensure better drainage and safety.
To facilitate the upgrade, up to 123 trees have been identified for removal to improve safety and visibility.
"Removing trees to facilitate a project is always a last resort, but this is about saving lives. The upgrades can't be completed without the tree removals and we will replace the trees to offset their loss," Mayor Were said.
"Through careful planning and redesign, the number of trees impacted has been significantly reduced when compared to our initial investigations."
Around $240,000 will be spent planting new trees at two existing offset planting sites at Christie Creek and Glenloth Reserve. These sites are approved by the Native Vegetation Council.
"We will be planting more trees than we remove, and will also provide additional planting and landscaping as part of the road construction works, making sure that the location and plant species selection is suitable for the site and will not create road hazards in the future," Mayor Were said.
Construction will start in the 2023-24 financial year and be completed by June 2024.
A community information (drop-in) session will be held on Thursday 10 May in Clarendon at Hazel McKenzie Hall, 7 Harper Road anytime from 4pm to 6:30pm.
The project team will be available to talk about the project and answer any questions.
To stay informed or provide feedback, visit the dedicated project page on Your Say Onkaparinga.
ENDS