Ballina’s River Street upgrade

The residents of Johnson Drive, West Ballina are being directly affected by the upgrade of River Street – which is already a busy, noisy and congested road.

I have not received any information about how the Council is going to obstruct the view of the four-lane carriageway, provide safety for the residents, or reduce the noise from construction and increased traffic.

How is the construction going to affect our children’s safety and how will Ballina Council compensate for the extra road and construction noise?

At present we have large established trees blocking the two-lane road.

Ballina Council has predicted there will be a traffic flow increase of 3,000 vehicles, double the road’s capacity, hence why River Street is being upgraded.

I am putting pressure on Ballina Council to install a noise wall in front of Johnson Drive, West Ballina and install double glazing to all houses on this road.

There are multiple families with young children living on Johnson Drive. River Street being exposed as a four-lane roadway is unsafe. The road is already unsafe with workers from the RTA speeding down the road putting young children’s lives at risk.

Myself and the other residents of Johnson Drive oppose the River Street upgrade there being no barrier between our houses and the four-lane roadway, or double-glazing to cancel out road and construction noise.

We are requesting a noise wall and double-glazing to be provided for safety and compensation.

Residents at Ballina Heights and Ferngrove were provided with both a noise wall and double-glazing for compensation, why are Ballina Council not providing us with the same?

At present the road noise is almost constant. It starts at 5am and doesn’t stop until 10pm. I will persist until West Ballina gets the same treatment as other suburbs.

Claire Reid, West Ballina