By JESSE GRAHAM
POLICE have praised a decision to drop the speed limit on a dangerous stretch of road in Dixons Creek, which has been the site of deadly crashes in recent years.
The speed limit has been dropped from 100 kilometres per hour to 80 kilometres per hour on a nine-kilometre stretch of the Melba Highway, which spans from Healesville-Kinglake Road through to Dixons Creek.
The section of road – nicknamed ‘The Slide’ – has been labelled as dangerous in the past by police officers, due to its winding corners and the dangers it poses in wet weather.
VicRoads statistics show 14 serious accidents along the highway between Beaches Lane and Healesville-Kinglake Road from 2008-2013 – three of these crashes were fatalities.
Yarra Ranges Highway Patrol’s Leading Senior Constable Graeme Rust said he hoped decreasing the speed limit along the stretch would lead to fewer accidents and serious injuries.
“There have been several truck prangs, and three fatalities in recent years along that stretch and, over the years, it has been a notorious length of road for serious injury collisions,” LSC Rust said.
“Hopefully we’ll wait and see that the lower speed will reduce the incidence of collisions.”
Yarra Glen Police officers campaigned in 2008 and 2009 for the speed limit along The Slide to be dropped, following fatal accidents that occurred there.
In 2009, an application by then-Sergeant Yvonne Strawhorn to VicRoads to reduce the speed limit on the same area of road, which came after a number of serious crashes, was rejected.
Yarra Glen Police Sergeant Richard Coulson said he believed the stretch of road was dangerous for drivers, particularly those who were inexperienced with the area or travelling in wet conditions.
However, he noted that the biggest danger for drivers travelling along dangerous roads, such as The Slide, was distraction through mobile phones and other devices.
“We do get calls on the Melba Highway for erratically driven vehicles, which often can turn out to be people not concentrating properly or who are distracted,” Sgt Coulson said.
“We regularly get calls for that sort of thing – erratically driven vehicles, and problems across the board with distraction-related devices such as phones, maps and GPS.”
Sgt Coulson urged drivers to pay attention to the roads at all times, particularly in wet weather in the lead-up to winter.
LSC Rust said the new speed limit would be well-signed for drivers heading towards the stretch of road.
The change to the speed limit came as a result of the Victorian Speed Limit Review, carried out by the State Government with VicRoads.
