By Tyler Wright
After three car accidents in the span of nine months near her family’s property in Belgrave, a Dandenong Ranges resident is calling for action.
Natasha Ivanoff is calling for a railing to be installed along the strip which runs along the Belgrave-Hallam Road property, after three incidents in the past nine months with cars steering off the road and into her parents’ yard.
One incident occurred in April 2022, followed by another in September, with the most recent crash occurring on Wednesday 4 January 2023.
The latest incident occurred minutes after Natasha’s children had finished playing nearby.
“That area is where [my children] go to swim…we’ve got a creek going around the property…and it’s quite wide…It would only take a car to just come another five metres, and [the car] would be on top of them,” she said.
“I said to my kids ‘if you even hear any crash at all, just run.’
“They shouldn’t have to do that.”
One shed on the property has been “totally demolished” in an accident, causing thousands of dollars worth of damage, Natasha said.
According to Natasha, car accidents have been an issue for the around 50 years her parents have lived on Belgrave-Hallam Road, but the issue has escalated in the past five years.
“It’s the same spot every time; there’s a permanent path through the bush, over the embankment,” she said.
In 2021, the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) investigated the stretch of Belgrave-Hallam Road after listening to the concerns of the local community and found the site lines, guidepost and line marking were appropriate at the location.
But Natasha said the existing infrastructure isn’t enough; and is calling on the DTP to install a safety barrier to prevent more incidents.
“I’m outraged…we simply just want a safety barrier in that section,” she said.
A Department of Transport and Planning spokesperson told the Star Mail that crews investigated Belgrave-Hallam Road in 2021 after hearing the concerns of the local community, and “found roadside infrastructure along this stretch to be appropriate”.
“In light of the recent incident, DTP will review the 2021 investigation and, if necessary, identify any changes to the road environment,” the spokesperson said.
Considering requests for upgrades on a state-wide and case by case basis, the DTP takes various factors into account, including the number and type of vehicles using the stretch of road.
The historical safety record of the site and the impact the upgrading of the road would have on the performance of the surrounding road are also taken into consideration.
