The NSW Government is providing more than $986,000 to help Central Coast Council install and maintain street lighting to improve road conditions for motorists travelling at night.
Parliamentary Secretary for Central Coast, Adam Crouch, said the grants under the Traffic Route Lighting Subsidy Scheme were helping provide improved and more reliable lighting on many roads throughout the region.
“Better visibility is a safety win for all road users, including motorists, cyclists and pedestrians,” he said.
“Under this scheme, we are compensating Central Coast Council for operational costs associated with eligible street lighting, which will help reduce the number of night-time accidents.
“This is on top of the additional funding that the NSW Government has provided Central Coast Council, through Natural Disaster Payments to help repair our roads after the recent July floods, making it safer for all road users,” Crouch said.
Minister for Regional Transport and Roads, Sam Farraway, said the Government was investing record funding in road safety to ensure people reach their destination safely when driving on regional roads.
“One death on our country roads is one too many and it takes a suite of measures to save as many lives as possible, like improving our roadside infrastructure,” he said.
“We have invested $640M into the Saving Lives on Country Roads program, targeting locations in regional areas where chances of an accident are greater.
“We’re also installing 2,700kms of rumble strips – the equivalent of driving from Sydney to Adelaide and back again – along regional highways to combat driver fatigue,” Farraway said.
The Traffic Route Lighting Subsidy Scheme will help cover capital costs for new and improved street lighting, maintenance work, network distribution and energy consumption costs.
Councils can receive a subsidy of up to 50 percent of the Australian Energy Regulator’s approved pricing to assist in rolling out a better level of lighting than otherwise provided on state, regional and designated roads.
Source:
Media release, August 2
Parliamentary Secretary Central Coast, Adam Crouch