TRAFFIC congestion, speeding vehicles, unsafe crossings and footpaths, and parking issues have emerged as the top concerns around peninsula schools, a survey has revealed. All schools and preschools as well as families were invited to participate in a consultation process by Mornington Peninsula Shire earlier this year as part of its Integrated Transport Strategy Development (ITS) and Safer Roads Funding and Priorities.
Based on the consultation, key themes included congestion occurring for around 20 to 30 minutes on school days; drivers ignoring speed limits around schools; and schools particularly close to main roads, having limited safe crossing points or the existing crossing points were not considered adequate, as well as concerns of insufficient parking.
There are about 100 schools and pre-schools on the peninsula with a shire report conceding that “road safety around them is a concern due to the vulnerability of children to accidents and injuries”. It also noted the issues raised had occurred on both shire-managed roads and state-managed roads “which highlights that collaboration is critical to address school safety concerns”.
Red Hill Consolidated School attracted the most responses (23) regarding the Mornington-Flinders Rd and Arthurs Seat Rd including traffic congestion, a need for a roundabout and lack of parking. The school’s council president Steve Marshall said he was pleased to see many members of the community get involved in the survey as safety was paramount.
However, he expressed reservations about one of the proposed solutions by the shire for a traffic island to be installed, which he believed didn’t go far enough. “I am worried that this is a band-aid approach. It won’t slow traffic. We know that a roundabout forces people to actually come to a stop,” he told The News. “There’s a daycare centre across the road, usually you’ve got parents picking up kids from the daycare and then darting across there to the school, but the crossing is only open part of the time; it’s a lot going on. “If it’s a properly designed, thought out process, then we know we’re going to get the right result. If that means a full set of traffic lights and a separate turning lane – even better.”
Marshall said it shouldn’t take an accident for action to occur, noting there was the complexity of the ownership of the roads between the state government and the shire, which was hindering progress. “It’s just been one versus the other, so it’s been hard for someone to actually take responsibility for coming up with a plan. We know there’s a problem and we know there’s a safety issue.”
Councillors at their 3 June meeting spoke on the issue in which they unanimously endorsed a shire officer’s recommendation for a report to come back by December on “wider road safety priorities and school safety priorities”. They also supported a “strategic approach” be developed to manage traffic and road safety concerns around schools.
According to the shire report, a “strategic approach” was the best option as “current council budgets and potential grant funding opportunities it is not possible to address all concerns through infrastructure improvements or enhanced traffic management in the short or medium term especially with other traffic and safety issues across the peninsula”.
Cr David Gill added to the recommendation that the shire “recognises emergency situations may occur that require immediate attention”. He also called for the continued advocacy to all levels of government for safety improvements on state and council roads where there is an “ongoing risk” to school communities.
“Many schools don’t have sufficient parking, and certainly the traffic flows with increased population have put our students and pupils in danger and we’re aware of that,” he said. “If there is an emergency situation with traffic and schools a potential crisis could occur with injuries and so on, I think that … we can’t use any excuse to say that we don’t act when we know that there is a potential catastrophe.”
Cr Michael Stephens supported the recommendation, in which he highlighted a “dangerous situation” in Crib Point where the two primary schools were located, including “two very busy and dangerous roads that kids need to cross” at Disney St and Stony Point Rd where there is no pedestrian crossing.
Cr Kate Roper said, “there are some really dangerous situations out there and some of them are just an accident waiting to happen”.
The council received 386 community surveys and 71 people responded to the school and preschool question with the ITS consultation while the Safer Roads Funding and Priorities had more than 2000 contributions.
First published in the Mornington News – 10 June 2025
