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Wake Up Warringah calls for new Spit Bridge, not just more talk
Wake Up Warringah’s Mayoral and C Ward candidate, Michael Regan, says his group is about to “make history” on the issue of the Spit Bridge. Mr Regan claims he will be the first candidate for a local government area not bordering the Spit to lobby hard for a solution to the traffic congestion there.
“For too long this issue has been confined to Mosman and Manly. We want change to the mentality that the impact of the Spit corridor problem starts and ends with these two councils,” said Mr Regan.
“We’re prepared to be the first Warringah candidates in history to be brave enough to demand a seat at the table to debate the Spit Bridge mess.”
Mr Regan says Wake Up will call on the new Warringah councillors to work together for a result on the Spit corridor traffic nightmare, which his group says is hurting Warringah both socially and economically.
“This issue is not just about how long you spend in the car in the morning, as the State government seems to think. Daily gridlock on the peninsula is slowly strangling Warringah’s businesses, which are increasingly becoming restricted by the stigma of driving to the northern beaches,” said Mr Regan.
“Wake Up will demand an economically feasible solution in a reasonable time frame that includes a new bridge. It’s clear to everyone on the northern beaches that real leadership won’t be taken on this matter by the major parties. As unaligned independents, Wake Up is able to deal with all sides on the tough issues and we can negotiate without letting political hysteria get in the way.”
As a starting point, Wake Up wants The Warren Centre’s six-lane, fixed bridge submission back on the table for serious consideration. (see artist’s impression)
“The six-lane bridge proposal was well-researched, costed and viable. Importantly, it was stage one of a holistic approach to a better private and public transport system for the Warringah region. Former head of the RTA, Ken Dobinson, championed it as part of a broad solution, but the idea was shelved for the sake of keeping the Spit a convenient political football. That’s just not good enough,” said Mr Regan.
“The Spit traffic issue is only ever played out at the party political point-scoring level and people are sick of it. Warringah is as affected as Manly and Mosman by this problem and our community should not be ignored,” he said.
Mr Regan said the impact of decades of inaction on the Spit has become a growing frustration throughout Warringah, but particularly for C Ward residents as their road networks are increasingly crippled with growing congestion.
“Warringah Road, Wakehurst Parkway and Forest Way’s peak hour and weekend gridlock is largely fed by the Spit bottleneck and drivers’ desperation for alternative routes. It’s bad for business, for workers, for locals and it’s time the State government was forced to act, regardless of politics or the number of votes in it.”
Mr Regan described the Minister for Transport Eric Roozendaal’s Spit corridor traffic plan of last week as “a $48M band-aid.”
“The plan is short-sighted, offers no public transport improvements and as always, ignores the wider Warringah region,” he said.
To highlight the issue, Mr Regan and the Wake Up team will be giving out free band aids to commuters on Tuesday August 12th from 7:30am at the corner of Heaton Road and Sydney Road, Clontarf.
“If the state government can offer commuters a band-aid, then so can we. The difference is ours will actually heal a sore spot while theirs is just more money down the drain for a measly saving of five minutes on the road – and they expect the people of the Northern Beaches to wait half a decade for it.”
“The next Warringah Council needs to take a strong position with the State Government on finding real solutions for our worsening traffic problems. Wake Up is not afraid to take that role on and show the Premier and his Ministers that we won’t be ignored any longer.”
For further information, contact:
Michael Regan
C Ward and Mayoral Candidate
Wake Up Warringah
Tel: 0425 220 618
Email: Michael@wakeup.net.au
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