By Esther Lauaki
One of the roads used to truck hundreds of tonnes of livestock and feed from the Macedon Ranges to market each year will be upgraded, thanks to the latest round of state funding.
The $220,000 investment, under the government’s Rural Roads Program, will be used to widen parts of Sidonia Road.
Sidonia Road connects farms in the area to the Calder Freeway, the saleyards and Hardwick Meats in Kyneton.
The upgrade is great news for operations such as merino wool producers Avington, one of five farms along Sidonia Road.
Avington principal Noel Henderson said the farm trucks out 400 bales of hay and moves about 5000 head of sheep a year.
“It’s [the road’s] been an issue for many years,” Mr Henderson said.
“With the increasing size of trucks and a school bus which uses this road every day it [the upgrade] was much needed.
“The trucks often move off the bitumen
all the time and get bogged at the side of
the road.
“When they do drive off the bitumen, that breaks up the edges of the road and it makes it even more dangerous.”
Macedon Ranges council has also contributed to the road upgrade, bringing total investment in the project to $440,000.
Macedon MP Mary-Anne Thomas said the upgrade would improve access for heavy vehicles servicing local livestock and stud breeding producers.
