Project update - February 2025

Works have been continuing on the roundabouts at South Creek Road and Middleton Road, and since their construction they have been operating well.

Construction on the pedestrian crossing at Grover Avenue, however, has been paused while we work closely with residents of Grover Avenue, Dalpura Street, Mirra Place, and Hoover Place to resolve concerns they have regarding access to their street.

We shared the concept plan for road safety improvements with you from 22 August to 19 September 2024 and heard from 208 people. Your feedback showed strong support for the proposed changes. These early plans provided a general idea of what the project would look like.

Since then, we have made adjustments to the plans at the Grover Avenue and Fisher Road North intersection to further improve safety for all road users. Unfortunately this was not communicated to the community.

Council has committed to providing options to the residents in order to resolve this. The options are provided below.

What changed after the concept?

The road width on Grover Avenue has been reduced to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists.

At the intersection of Grover Avenue and Fisher Road North, we have extended the kerb to create a single-lane entry and a single-lane exit for vehicles turning onto Fisher Road North. While having separate right- and left-turn lanes may be more convenient for drivers, it poses a greater safety risk for pedestrians and cyclists.

In the previous layout, pedestrians and cyclists were at a higher risk of stepping between queued right-turning vehicles into the path of moving left-turning traffic. This change aims to minimise that risk and improve overall safety. The amended design was reviewed and supported by an external independent Road Safety Auditor.

What have we heard?

We have had two on site meetings with residents to listen and understand their concerns.

Residents of Grover Avenue, Dalpura Street, Mirra Place, and Hoover Place have clearly told us the restriction of access out of Grover Avenue will create issues for residents and visitors to the area.

Residents are concerned that the removal of the ability to turn left while a vehicle is waiting to turn right can cause delays in exiting Grover Avenue due to traffic on Fisher Road North. This is exacerbated during sporting events on weekends (especially in winter) which can lead to significant traffic queues.

What are we are proposing?

We are looking to achieve improved pedestrian safety and management of vehicle movements. We have prepared three options.

Although these options are unable to provide a right and left hand turn out of Grover, the options look to balance road design considerations, safety for walkers and bike riders and the needs of residents.

What’s next?

We are seeking your feedback on three revised plan options for this section of work. Your input will help refine the design elements before construction progresses. Once finalised, the updated design will be reviewed by an independent Road Safety Auditor prior to the continuation of construction.

View the options below and have your say.

Project background

The busy intersection of South Creek Road, Fisher Road North, and Middleton Road in Cromer is an important spot for walkers, bike riders, and drivers. After listening to your concerns about safety, we are making significant improvements that will help everyone who uses these roads.

We conducted community consultation between 22 August and 19 September 2024 and heard from 208 community members. The response was generally positive, with strong support for safer walking and bike riding routes, reduced traffic congestion, and lower vehicle speeds. While feedback on bus stop accessibility and heavy vehicle movement varied, the proposed plans directly addressed community safety concerns and traffic flow management.

The Community Engagement Summary Report was presented to Council's Local Traffic Committee, with the road safety improvements approved for installation.

Local Traffic Committee Meeting (1 October 2024, item 4.3):

• View the Agenda
• View the Minutes

Discover the outcomes of our initial community consultation in the community engagement summary report.

*The comments count is manually updated and only indicative until the final report is published. It reflects the total online contributions received only.

**All comments in their entirety are made publicly available in the Community Engagement Report. Personal identifying information, and content which is discriminatory, hateful or which may defame, offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate will be redacted.