Editorial: Hell’s Highway

EMERGENCY services estimate there is a serious accident on the New England Highway around Scone each month, prompting them to dub it “Hell’s Highway”.

In the Upper Hunter Shire area last year there were two fatalities, 24 serious injuries, 16 moderate injuries and 6 minor injuries resulting from accidents on our roads.

Across the whole Hunter there were 75 people who died on our roads last year, compared to the entire Sydney basin which was 97.

Elizabeth Flaherty, editor.

What is more alarming is the road toll in the Hunter is going up, while the road toll in the Sydney Basin is going down significantly.

And when you stop and consider the number of motorists in the Hunter compared to Sydney the percentage of people dying in the Hunter is abysmal.

Clearly roads maintained by regional Council’s are an ongoing problem, with nowhere near the funding needed to maintain them, much less make real improvements.

But the New England Highway, which is the responsibility of the state government, seems to constantly have road works, yet people are still dying on it.

In speaking with local emergency services the common factors seem to be fatigue, speed and taking risks.

Since Scone is two hours from Newcastle, three hours from Sydney and nearly two hours from Tamworth – it seems to be an epicenter for motorists who are becoming fatigued or impatient.

People are justifiably concerned about how the bypass will impact on local businesses but we should also consider how it may impact on the road toll.

Encouraging motorists to stop in Scone is not just something we need to do for business, but also needed for road safety.

Perhaps when the bypass does go in there is a concentrated local campaign to encourage motorists using Hell’s Highway to stop, revive and survive.

Elizabeth Flaherty
Editor, scone.com.au