Wednesday, 19 June 2024

 Brad ROWSWELL (Sandringham) (14:50): (694) My constituency question is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety. Imagine a typical morning in Cheltenham: families hustling to get children to school, workers commuting to their jobs, cyclists on their morning ride, local businesses gearing up for the day. Bay Road is the lifeline that connects my community, and yet this government proposes to reduce the lanes on Bay Road to just a single lane under the Frankston line railway bridge, which threatens to disrupt that lifeline, creating a bottleneck in my community. Residents are concerned. Parents fear longer, more stressful commutes. Business owners are worrying about customers avoiding the area due to increased traffic. Therefore I ask the minister: could the minister please outline the rationale for the reduction of lanes on Bay Road to one lane and provide details of how this change will impact congestion in Cheltenham? Our community deserves a transparent explanation. We need to understand the planning considerations and the anticipated impacts of this decision. Our daily lives, our safety and the vibrancy of our local community and businesses depend on that.