The Darling Downs Residents Association (DDRA) is calling for a safety wall along the Comic Loop South (CLS) trail, warning upgraded roadworks in the area could pose serious risks to riders.
Association president Bruce Hilliard said the trail, which runs parallel to the upgraded Thomas Road, had become more exposed due to the removal of trees that once acted as a natural barrier.
“The trees that currently provide partial shielding from the noise and movement of vehicles have been removed,” Mr Hilliard said.
He said the loss of vegetation, combined with planned road changes, would create a dangerous situation for horses and riders.
“(Cars and trucks) are going to be between 10 and 17 metres from a horse with no breakage whatsoever between,” he said.
“There’s nothing to break up the noise, to stop the noise or to stop the visual movement.
“The reality is, are we going to wait until somebody dies before we do something about this?”
Mr Hilliard said the construction of roundabouts on Kardan Boulevard as well as at Masters and Malarkey roads, designed to support the movement of large trucks, would significantly change traffic conditions in the area.
“Currently, the traffic along this part of the road typically moves at a steady pace, and there is little utilisation of braking by trucks,” he said.
“However, once the roundabouts are implemented, the many trucks using this road may need to utilise their air brakes up to about 100 metres on either side of the roundabouts.
“These truck air brakes can generate noise exceeding 100 dB(A).
“This type of intermittent and unexpected noise can spook horses, leading to catastrophic accidents.”
Mr Hilliard said the CLS trail attracted thousands of riders from across WA each year and argued the risk was not hypothetical.
He said there were numerous cases where horses had been spooked by traffic noise.
“If you have a horse coming along a trail which curves, at some point during that period, the horse will see the truck heading directly at it,” Mr Hilliard said.
“Horses, by their very nature, are designed to run away when there’s a change or a challenging situation.
“Consequently, we now have a created situation where they’re going to almost invariably create a bolting or a bucking situation.”
Mr Hilliard said the state government’s reason for not extending the noise wall was administrative rather than based on real-world safety considerations.
“They are not considering the real-world risks; they simply don’t want to potentially have to implement additional noise walls in other situations,” he said.
Mr Hilliard said the longer the government delayed the installation of a safety wall, the more expensive it would become.
“Therefore, early action is likely to save the taxpayers a substantial amount of money,” he said.
A Main Roads spokesperson said they were working with the Tonkin Extension Alliance to minimise vegetation removal near the CLS trail.
The spokesperson said under state planning policy (SPP) 5.4, noise walls were required where projects affected defined noise-sensitive land uses such as homes, schools and medical facilities.
“Equestrian trails within public open space are not classified as noise sensitive land uses,” the spokesperson said.
“Independent acoustic modelling was undertaken and determined a noise wall was warranted between Tonkin Highway and Comic Loop West, but there was not a requirement to extend the wall further east.”
The spokesperson said Main Roads reviewed the feasibility of installing an additional barrier along CLS, including extensive independent safety assessment, in response to community feedback.
“(The review) found the location did not present a demonstrated safety risk that would warrant a barrier,” Main Roads said.
The spokesperson said Main Roads and the Tonkin Extension Alliance would continue to engage with the Shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale’s equine working group on equine matters throughout the design and construction process.
Shire President Rob Coales said the sound wall between Thomas Road and the CLS trail was a matter between the DDRA, the Tonkin Extension Alliance and the state government.
The Examiner asked Transport Minister Rita Saffioti whether she believed a safety wall should be installed.
Ms Saffioti said she did not have anything to add to Main Roads’ response.
Photographs – Ella Friedlos.
