Long weekend road toll raises the question of a Bells Line upgrade
Announcement posted by NRMA Motoring & Services 05 Oct 2010
The road toll for New South Wales this long weekend reached 8, more than double the previous year’s toll for the same period.
Four members from the same family were tragically killed, after their sedan collided head-on with a semi trailer on the Bells Line of road at Bilpin. Police believe the accident was triggered after the car overtook another vehicle.
A 2003 audit by the NRMA showed that in the previous 10 years, 129 people have died and 2984 people were injured in accidents on Blue Mountains crossings with 23 of those deaths on the Bells Line of Road.
According to an NRMA study, drivers on the Bells Line of Road are unable to overtake slower vehicles for over 80% of the 81 kilometre route unless they attempt dangerous overtaking manoeuvres.
Some have suggested building a four-lane Bells Line Expressway is the best way to improve safety on that route while others believe smaller-scale plans such as improving the worst sections of the existing two-lane road and/or installing more passing lanes would be more achievable.
Do you drive the Bells Line of road and do you find it a dangerous road on which to drive? What do you think could be done to improve conditions?
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