Speeds at “notorious” Wagerup intersection reduced from 110km/h to 80km/h to improve road safety

Vehicle speeds at a “notorious” intersection which serves as the entry point to part of Alcoa’s Peel operations have been cut as part of an effort to improve road safety.

The intersection of South Western Highway and Willowdale Road in Wagerup is used by both light and heavy vehicles to access the nearby Alcoa Wagerup alumina refinery as well as the company’s Willowdale mine.

It has also been the scene of a number of fatal and non-fatal crashes due to the heavy amount of traffic passing through the intersection every day.

Now in an effort to improve road safety, vehicle speeds at the intersection have been slashed from 110km/h to 80km/h.

The decision was made following a review by Main Roads, while a discussion was also recently held at the site between Transport Minister Rita Saffioti, Murray-Wellington MLA Robyn Clarke, Alcoa representatives and concerned community members.

In a speech on the issue in State Parliament earlier this month, Ms Clarke read a letter from Joe Dwyer, whose son Kane Dwyer was involved in a crash at the intersection in June.

Fortunately his child and the young driver of the other vehicle were uninjured in the incident.

“As my son travels through this intersection daily it is common practice to slow down to 90km/h as this is a very congested intersection (at 5.30am) in the morning, as he also did on this morning,” Mr Dwyer said.

“But if he was going the speed limit of 110km/h, there may have been a very different outcome for these two young boys.”

Another letter received by Ms Clarke from union representatives at the Wagerup refinery and Willowdale mine described a speed reduction at the intersection as an “urgent matter”.

The letter highlighted an incident which occurred in the early hours of July 14, which the representatives said resulted in a vehicle being “literally torn in half”.

Ms Clarke said she was pleased with the speed reduction, having previously described the intersection as “notorious”.

“This is a significant win for our community and I know this is an outcome that will help improve road safety in our area,” she said.

The change comes just months after $1.57 million was committed to upgrade the intersection through the Federal Government’s Black Spot Program.

Those works are set to occur during the 2024-25 financial year.