Southern Grampians Shire Council advises that a 1km stretch of Cavendish-Coleraine road is currently under traffic management due to extensive damage.
The road has been reduced to one lane with traffic lights on the section, approximately 11km out of Coleraine and a lower speed limit is in place. Drivers may experience delays and are asked to exercise caution when travelling on this road.
Problems with tunnel erosion on approximately 700m of the embankment on one side of the road have caused concern over the stability of the slope. Traffic management is now in place to move traffic away from the edge of the slope until the works to repair the erosion and re-stabilise the slope can be completed early in 2019.
Tunnel erosion occurs when water enters the soil profile and travels beneath the road surface moving soil below the surface. The large volumes of water movement that occurred in September 2016 floods and storms resulted in this type of erosion at numerous sites around the Shire. The repair of tunnel erosion has required specialist design input and is due to commence, however while the repairs have been in the design phase, the damage at this location has worsened and now requires traffic to be limited to one lane for the safety of all road users.
The Federal and State Governments, through the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements, are financially supporting Southern Grampians Shire Council in the reinstatement of assets damaged in the 2016 flood event.
Anyone requiring further information should contact Manager Flood Recovery, Nola McFarlane on 5573 0423.