By Danielle Collis
ALICIA Edwards is determined not to be left in the dark despite having her request for lighting in an overgrown path rejected by Mornington Peninsula Shire.
She says the popular path between Hazeldene Way [at the end of Ellaswood Mews] and Parkedge Circuit, Rosebud is overgrown and dark.
“The safety of the neighbourhood is our main concern and having a well lit and maintained walkway would drastically reduce the risk of our personal safety being compromised,” she said.
Ms Edwards says there are too many incidents occurring in parks, walkways and footpaths due to lack of lighting attracting unwanted attention.
“Our aim is to significantly reduce the chances of slips, falls and people lurking around by being provided lighting and regular maintenance of this walkway.”
Victoria Walks executive officer Ben Rossiter wants Victorians and fitness groups to lobby their councils to apply for a new state government grant.
The new grant would provide money for solar lighting on popular pathways and recreational trails.
The shire’s executive manager communications and events, Randal Mathieson, said that when assessing the request from Ms Edwards it considered road and pedestrian safety, amenity and impact on the surrounding properties.
“The shire did consider the request from a road safety perspective, but no road safety issues were identified.
“It is not common practice for the shire to install streetlights in laneways,” Mr Mathieson said.
He said the shire completed a major street lighting upgrade in 2018, replacing 10,724 standard mercury vapour street lights with energy efficient LED luminaires.
The shire spent $2266 on public lighting from 2018 to 2019.
Ms Edwards wants residents to sign her petition at change.org.
First published in the Southern Peninsula News – 14 July 2020
