ROADS — CLOSURE
132. Hon COLIN de GRUSSA to the minister representing the
Minister for Transport:
I refer to recent closures to
Highway 1 in Western Australia, including a 12-day road closure of Eyre Highway
over the Christmas period and the recent temporary road closure of South Coast
Highway between Ravensthorpe and Munglinup on 8 February.
(1) What protocol
is followed when closing a major road or highway, and can the minister please
table this protocol?
(2) What entities
or agencies are consulted in this decision and who makes the final decision
regarding road closures?
(3) What
consideration is given to heavy vehicle operators who have limited alternative
routes available?
(4) Is any
consideration given to the nature and types of these alternative routes,
including the suitability of these alternative routes for heavy vehicle
operators and whether they may require an escort to use those alternative
routes?
Hon
STEPHEN DAWSON replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question. The following answer has been provided to me by
the Minister for Transport.
(1) The closure
of roads during emergency incidents, especially level 3 incidents such as the
Eyre Highway fire, is undertaken in accordance with the ''Traffic
Management During Emergencies Guideline 2015'', which is administered by
the State Emergency Management Committee.
(2) All hazard
management agencies are consulted when a level 3 emergency incident is likely
to result in a road closure. The police, however, are ultimately responsible
for making the decision to close a road.
(3) When road
closures occur during emergency incidents, Main Roads WA informs heavy vehicle
operators of the road closures via traffic broadcasts and its travel map on the
Main Roads website, and heavy vehicle updates are provided on the Main Roads
heavy vehicle services website, Twitter and Facebook, and by phone from the
customer information centre that operates 24/7.
(4) Transport
operators can use Main Roads heavy vehicle services website to identify
alternative routes. In some cases, there are no suitable detours for some
classes of vehicles.