The busy intersection at the corner of Byron Bay Road and Byron Street in Lennox Head is an accident waiting to happen, according to locals Jamie Hoile and Ballina Shire Councillor Eva Ramsey.
Cr Ramsey started a petition about the issue in May, which has 174 signatures and rising. She told The Echo that while the roundabout is not currently in Ballina Council’s delivery program, it needs to be prioritised as a matter of urgency as Lennox becomes busier.
Eva Ramsey would like to see the speed limit reduced as drivers come down the hill on Byron Bay Road towards the intersection (heading north), as well as the construction of a new roundabout to avoid the problem of long delays for people leaving Lennox Head, particularly at peak times.
‘It’s just become really dangerous,’ she said. ‘You take your life into your hands.’
Cr Ramsey said that while there haven’t been any major accidents so far, she is aware of minor accidents which have not been reported to police, and ‘if it doesn’t come up on the stats, it doesn’t become a hot spot’.
She says there have been at least eight or nine close shaves.
‘The problem is the speed limit as you come off the hill,’ said Cr Ramsey. ‘People who don’t live here just see open road. They take off and then all of a sudden that intersection’s there and they’re still doing 80.’
Wrong priorities?
Lennox local Jamie Hoile got in touch with The Echo to question the priorities of Ballina Council, with ongoing support for extensive urban development and beautification work on the main street while critical safety infrastructure – such as a roundabout at the junction of Byron Street and Byron Bay Road – remains on the backburner.
‘A fatality is an imminent event at this intersection,’ said Mr Hoile.
‘Council is on notice that they have been warned of this likelihood in the very near future. It may even be in the next few days, weeks, or months.’
He said traffic flow at this danger point has increased exponentially in recent months, with continuous, unrelenting traffic flows along the coast road at 80 km/h in both directions.
‘The stream of traffic can often be unbroken for very long periods of time, resulting in extremely long wait times for any vehicles waiting to attempt to enter Byron Bay Road from Byron Street,’ said Mr Hoile.
‘The frustration levels of drivers waiting for safe entry into that traffic flow inevitably results in far too many motorists hazarding risk to life, as their access is denied for periods of five or ten minutes or even longer.
‘Any Lennox Head resident will bear witness to the fact that they have watched too many of these potentially fatal errors of judgement, on a daily basis,’ he said.
Cr Ramsey says the amount of traffic in Lennox Head has tripled, and rising, as the area becomes increasingly popular.
‘It’s just a matter of time before something happens. And I don’t want to sit here and watch somebody lose the life of their child or their parent.’
Jamie Hoile was recently waiting in the intersection queue at the high risk period of around 3.20pm. He recalls that, ‘after waiting for approximately five or six minutes, an elderly couple finally took the gamble and pulled out into the rapidly streaming traffic still flowing in both directions.
‘With the screeching of brakes from many cars the impact was barely avoided on this occasion.’
Mr Hoile said many vehicles at this time of the afternoon are also transporting children. He suggests that even a relatively cheap ‘temporary’ roundabout would be safer than the current situation.
‘The cost in potential loss of life is far greater,’ he said.
Tragedy before action?
With accidents needing to be recorded before safety works can be prioritised under black spot funding, locals are frustrated that no grant for the necessary works is currently available.
Meanwhile Cr Ramsey says traffic jams are now extending all the way back to the school at peak times. ‘Everyone’s concerned about it,’ she said.
Cr Ramsey says she’s found support from a number of her fellow Ballina councillors, and is hoping something can be done sooner rather than later, both about the roundabout and the nearby speed zone.
Members of the public can support her petition here, and also submit requests for speed zone changes around the Byron Bay Road/Byron Street intersection to Transport for NSW via the Safer Roads for NSW site here.
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