NRMA to survey condition and safety of Newell Highway

Australia's leading motoring organisation, National Roads and Motorists' Association Limited (NRMA), will conduct an audit of the Newell Highway to determine the condition and safety of the 1060km-long road as part of its campaign for country road funding.
NRMA President, Mr Nicholas Whitlam, said the audit will look
specifically at crash and injury rates on the Newell, which is one
of the longest stretches of highway in NSW, extending from the
Victorian to the Queensland borders.This will be the first NRMA audit of the Newell since 1994 to
examine carriageways, traffic volume, crash and casualty rates,
signage, lane widths, the frequency of resting spots and so on, in
both directions."As a National Highway, it is also one of the state's most
travelled routes. The Newell is a key corridor for commerce and
tourism and needs to be in good condition and as safe as possible,"
Mr Whitlam said."This audit will give us the facts about the state of the road,
how much it is used and how it can be improved."Thousands of people regularly travel to centres such as
Narrenderra, West Wyalong, Forbes, Parkes and Dubbo and on through
to Moree and then Goodiwindi."On such a long stretch of road, speed and fatigue are likely to
be the main causes of crashes. The audit will look at work already
conducted on the road and further work that is required to improve
safety."Mr Whitlam said the results will be sent to the Federal
Government, with recommendations for improvements such as more dual
carriageway or safe overtaking lanes in certain locations."The NRMA has a strong road audit program in place for major
country roads," he added."There needs to be a minimum 10-year strategic transport plan,
including roads, and a minimum five-year rolling works program by
the Commonwealth Government, rather than a fragmented approach."We need to know thee is a regular funding stream as well as
where the money is to be spent in the future."The NRMA Board is visiting Dubbo this week to meet community
leaders and NRMA members to learn more about local issues and how
the NRMA can help its members.Mt Whitlam said that in the Orana region last year 18 people
were killed and 464 people were injured in road crashes."Sadly, over Easter, there was another serious crash near Yeoval
which required a motorist being flown to hospital in Sydney by the
NRMA Careflight helicopter," he said."We know that country drivers are 50% more likely to be involved
in a fatal crash that metropolitan residents."Of great concern is the fact that the number of people being
killed on country roads is rising. Improving country roads is an
important issue for the NRMA."