Thursday, 19 March 2026

 Tim BULL (Gippsland East) (09:48): Since 2023 I have raised the issue of the Paynesville Road surface with the minister. Correspondence with the minister indicated that geotechnical inspections and work had taken place in the area of concern where the road surface was already cracking. It is known locally as the Paynesville roller-coaster. When you are going along this road, you are going up and down. In seeking an update on those 2023 geotechnical studies and where things were at, I was very surprised to find in the latest correspondence from the minister that in fact that was not the area that had been inspected. It was a flat area of road a couple of hundred yards further towards Bairnsdale that was inspected. So nothing has gone on in relation to this area of concern that many, many locals are wondering about. It is very close to the Mitchell River, and the concern there is that there is undercutting. I would encourage the Minister for Roads and Road Safety to actually inspect the section of road where the problems are very, very visible, and get some answers so that we can get it fixed.