When the Victorian government opened applications for a 20 per cent rebate on car registrations, Kerry Taylor was one of the 2 million people who jumped at the chance to get some money back.
But the Warrnambool resident says that financial relief will be short-lived, after rough road conditions in Victoria’s south-west blew out a tyre.
“I got my refund, but now I’m going to have to put it towards tyres,” she said.
Ms Taylor was driving from Geelong back to her home on Monday when she hit a large pothole and destroyed a left-hand tyre on the Princes Highway near Cudgee, about 19 kilometres east of Warrnambool.
She said the tyre popped with a “bang”, before her Volkswagen Tiguan SUV shook and veered to the left of the road.
“I had my 11-year-old grandson with me, and it scared him quite severely,” she said.
Kerry Taylor says driving through this pothole popped one of her tyres with a “bang”. (Supplied: Kerry Taylor)
Ms Taylor said the local roads were in the worst condition in her 30 years of living in Warrnambool.
“You’ve got to dodge the potholes, you’re waving all over the road … it’s just a nightmare,” she said.
“It makes me feel very anxious, especially at dusk.
“I hardly ever drive at night because you don’t know where these holes are.”
Ms Taylor said she had put the $160 from her rebate towards her $800 bill, which she thinks is unfair.
“Our cars have to be roadworthy to be on the road. How about [the government] makes the roads roadworthy, so we can put our cars on the road,”
she said.
Wheels ‘exploded’
The stretch of road where Ms Taylor blew a tyre has become a notorious area for drivers.
Just the week before, the Department of Transport and Planning said road crews had inspected and repaired the highway at Cudgee, after multiple cars hit potholes during rainy weather on June 4.
Victoria Police said officers attended the scene to assist a number of motorists who were pulled over to change tyres on the side of the road.
But despite these repairs, Ms Taylor was not the only motorist to suffer vehicle damage after hitting a pothole.
Potholes are an issue across south-west Victoria, including in Timboon (pictured). (Landline: Tim Lee)
Geoff Cain and his partner were travelling from Melbourne to Warrnambool on Monday evening after dark, when the pair hit a “deep pothole” on that same stretch of highway.
Mr Cain, who was driving at the time, said it seemed like the wheels “exploded” when the car hit the hole.
“There was a very big impact [and] it was really frightening, we both yelled out,” he told ABC South West Victoria.
He said he needed to replace two tyres, costing him $500.
John McNeil from McNeils Tyre and Auto said his Warrnambool business had been flat out repairing vehicles this week.
John McNeil says his tyre shop has been extra busy in the past week. (ABC News: Jean Bell)
Mr McNeil said the workshop was often fixing cars that had hit potholes and that the Victorian government needed to do more to mend roads in poor condition in the area.
“If you’re going down the road and there’s a big hole in front of you, but there’s a truck coming the other way, you’ve got no way to [go] but to hit the pothole,”
he said.
Mr McNeil said his customers were opting to pay for the repair costs out of pocket, as it was not worth paying an insurance excess, plus hiked premiums, to pay for the works.
John McNeil says the cars he has fixed include a brand-new Tesla, which only had 1,300 kilometres on the odometer when it popped this tyre. (ABC News: Jean Bell)
“In tough economic times, people are getting these extraordinary bills for something that shouldn’t be happening,” he said.
Potholes dangerous
The Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (RACV) head of policy, James Williams, said the condition of south-west Victorian roads posed a safety risk.
“People are swerving, they’re potentially hitting on-coming cars or trees on the side of the road,”
he said.
“We also know that potholes and rough surfaces are doing terrible damage to people’s vehicles.”
James Williams says the RACV is seeing a significant increase in tyre blowouts. (Supplied: RACV)
But the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) says evidence suggests that road conditions were not a major contributing factor to fatal and other serious crashes on Victorian roads.
“Driver and rider behaviours like speeding, fatigue, distractions, not wearing seat belts and impairment remain the major issues when it comes to road trauma,”
TAC head of road safety Samantha Cockfield said.
“Regardless of the roads we are travelling on, we should always make safe choices, obey the road rules, stay alert and drive to the conditions.”
Government responds
The state government said more than 2 million Victorians had applied for the car registration rebate.
The ABC asked the Minister for Roads and Road Safety, Ros Spence, whether the state of south-west Victorian roads posed a safety risk to motorists, and whether it was fair that road users had to foot repair bills.
The minister did not respond to these questions.
Instead, a Victorian government spokesperson pointed to the latest budget investing $1.04 billion into roads, with 70 per cent of this funding going towards the regions.
A Department of Transport and Planning spokesperson said crews would continue to monitor the Princes Highway after repairs were completed last week.
The ABC asked the department how many requests for compensation it had received.
The spokesperson said: “It would be inappropriate to comment on the outcome of individual road compensation claims.”
