Go-slow signage to help deter ‘unsafe hooning’

New road signage will aim to deter “unsafe hooning” near Porcupine Lookout in Gunnedah.

The Gunnedah Local Traffic Advisory Committee supported a recommendation that a “Slow Down” sign be installed near the intersection of Apex Drive and the Porcupine Hill offshoot road.

NSW Police will also be provided with traffic count results to inform the best times to monitor driver behaviour.

It follows a report to council from the community about “unsafe hooning” in the area that was considered “more than just speeding”.

The traffic committee advice was one of more than a dozen recommendations expected to go before Gunnedah Shire Council’s February ordinary meeting last night.

Also recommended were measures to discourage queuing of turning traffic entering McDonalds from Elgin Street during peak school start and finish times.

The committee suggested reinstatement of double-line marking from the roundabout into Elgin Street, fixing retro-reflective raised pavement markers to delineate the centre of the road and undertake a line marking design for the ‘No Standing’ area in front of the McDonalds entrance.

In Curlewis, the committee noted the completion of design and signage of a proposed bus shelter and bus stop in Goran Street.

Back in Gunnedah, the committee endorsed the redesign of parking line marking and signage in Conadilly Street between Elgin Street and Abbott Street to accommodate 60-degree parking.

Also approved was disability parking in Wentworth Street, Kitchener Park, Gunnedah, with the addition of a chevron No-Standing area (including No Stopping sign) between the disabled space and the corner of Conadilly Street.

In a decision regarding the design of bus movement line marking and signage in Rodney Street and Stock Road, Gunnedah, the committee recommended the holistic review of Stock Road traffic interacting with turning traffic (including bus routes) along its whole length.

Council officers will return to the committee with a proposal that considered all issues and provided options.

Still in Gunnedah, the committee endorsed the revised line marking and signage plan to facilitate traffic flow at the intersection of Little Conadilly Street and Marquis Street, as well as intersection operation improvements at Eighth Division Memorial Avenue and Hunter Street.

The committee also supported a recommendation to undertake pedestrian counts at the corner of Elgin Street and Barber Street, Gunnedah, with a view to understanding if pedestrian traffic meets the warrant for considering the installation of a pedestrian crossing.

According to council’s February business paper, Transport for NSW is legislated as the organisation responsible for the control of traffic on all roads in New South Wales under the Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) Act 1999.

In order to deal with the large number and range of traffic-related matters effectively, Roads and Maritime has delegated certain aspects of the control of traffic on local roads to councils.

Transport for NSW has retained both the control of traffic on the state’s classified road network and the control of traffic signals on all roads.

The delegation to councils limits the types of prescribed traffic control devices and traffic control facilities that council can authorise and imposes certain conditions on councils.

One of these conditions requires councils to obtain the advice of Roads and Maritime Services and the police prior to proceeding with any proposal. This is most commonly achieved by councils establishing a Local Traffic Committee.

The committee is composed of four formal members each with one vote. These four members are a representative from council, the police, and Roads and Maritime Services and the local state member of parliament or their nominee. The Local Traffic Committee is an advisory body only, having no decision making powers. It is, primarily, a technical review committee that is required to advise the council on traffic related matters referred to it by council.

The Gunnedah Local Traffic Advisory Committee has supported a recommendation that a “Slow Down” sign be installed near the intersection of Apex Drive and the Porcupine Hill offshoot road.