Thank you Chair.
I rise to speak about a long-standing issue in my Ward which, thanks to the Schrinner Council with support from the State’s Department of Transport and Main Roads, will soon be resolved.
Since my election in 2020, I have been working with the Brookfield State School, the Brookfield community, Council officers and State Member for Moggill, Dr. Christian Rowan on a road safety solution for schoolchildren on Brookfield Road during the busy drop-off and pick-up times.
Over the years, there have been instances where children have been hit by motorists and many more “near misses”.
I still recall the conversation I had with the distraught father of a student who had been hit by a vehicle while trying to cross Brookfield Road after school. Thankfully, she escaped serious injury but that just reinforced to me that something needed to be done.
After discussions with the experts, a designated school zone during school hours (7am to 9am and 2pm to 4pm) with a speed reduction to 40km an hour and a supervised crossing, appeared to be the obvious solution.
But it wasn’t that simple. Because the Brookfield State School didn’t have frontage to Brookfield Road, it wasn’t entitled to an official school zone.
At one stage last year, I was advised in writing that the Education Department would purchase an easement through the Showgrounds Reserve which would have given the School Brookfield Road frontage and an automatic entitlement to a School Zone.
But that proved to be a false alarm. The State Government for some reason decided not to proceed with that purchase.
I undertook to the School’s P and C to consult the Brookfield community to determine the best way to go forward. Unsurprisingly, a large percentage of respondents believed a 40km an hour speed reduction during the busy before and after school period was the preferred solution.
I again wrote to the Department of Transport and Main Roads in July this year saying we needed a circuit breaker and requesting that Brookfield Road be considered as a “special case” for a school zone.
To my delight, TMR responded in writing that they now supported a supervised school crossing at Brookfield Road.
I want to publicly thank TMR for this, along with my colleague, the Infrastructure Chair, Cr. Wines for his ongoing support.
As we on this side of the Chamber know, Cr. Wines is a commonsense, practical Chair who doesn’t let red tape get in the way of a sensible outcome.
I also want to thank Dr. Rowan, Council’s TNO officers and the Brookfield community for their patience and support in achieving a dedicated school zone for Brookfield Road.
Council officers will now work with TMR to deliver this important local community project and I look forward to providing an update on exactly where and when it will be installed and operational.
Thank you.