“Can’t afford to have one accident”: Southern Grampians moves forward with $480,000 upgrade of dangerous Hamilton intersection

Southern Grampians Shire Council has committed almost $500,000 to reshape a high-risk Y-intersection on the Glenelg Highway, with councillors backing the project unanimously in a bid to improve road safety.

What happened: Council awarded the contract to CivilNow for $487,177 at last Tuesday’s council meeting.

The company will be tasked with converting the Glenelg Highway and Blackwood-Dunkeld Road intersection into a safer T-intersection

• The council has already completed $1.02 million worth of pedestrian crossing upgrades across Hamilton under the state government’s Safe Local Roads and Streets Program.

• The state government awarded the council a further $781,000 in funding for intersection upgrades late last month. 

• The upgrade will include new signage, guard railing, line marking and road surfacing. 

The background: A 2023 Road Safety Audit identified the intersection as high-priority because of “limited sight distance”, “poor observation angles” and an increased risk of crashes due to the current layout.

• The report found the existing design created higher-speed turning movements, while a lack of formal traffic control at the minor road split increased the risk of vehicles failing to give way. 

No-brainer: Councillor Katrina Rainsford, who moved the motion, said the project was part of a broader effort to eliminate dangerous Y-intersections.

“I’m not sure how many accidents have been there, but we can’t afford to have one,” she told the meeting.

• The motion passed without debate. 

Now what? Work is expected to be complete on all intersection upgrades by May 2027.