New sign ‘huge waste of money’
GOLD Coast motor racing legend and road safety advocate Russell Ingall has slammed a $2 million Gold Coast street-light installation on the M1 at Yatala, saying the money would have been better spent on safety.
He has labelled the illuminated structure a “terrible design,” a “huge waste” of taxpayer money and a “dangerous distraction” for drivers.
“(Gold Coast City) Council do some dumb things, but this rates up there,” he said.
“First of all, I hate wasted money, especially it it’s taxpayer money. This could have been better spent on educating young drivers about road safety and lowering the death toll on our roads.
“Secondly, it’s just a terrible design. You can’t even read what it is supposed to say, even from straight on.
“It’s just bizarre, it’s a distraction. People are looking at the sign trying to figure out what it is rather than focusing on the road.
“They are slowing down to have a look and it’s just creating dangerous conditions on the motorway.”
The city council installed the sign as a “gateway’’ statement for the city ahead of the Commonwealth Games, with light posts also installed at the southern end of the city, spelling “GC’’ at the Gold Coast Airport exit.
Funded last year by the council, the 11m tall light signs were set up in the hope they would become icons on par with the “Hollywood’’ and “Welcome to Las Vegas’’ signs.
But the Department of Transport and Main Roads has hit back.
A spokeswoman said the installation near Exit 38 at Yatala complied with the roadside advertising guide, meaning it was deemed not to be a distraction.
She said of the average 150,000 vehicles that passed the site daily, the department had only received two “inquiries’’ since the lights were switched on.
“These inquiries have been referred to the City of Gold Coast for a response as it is their project,” she said.
Deputy Mayor Donna Gates voted against the project in its infancy last year, telling the Bulletin traffic congestion in the northern Gold Coast was getting worse and the community would have preferred the money was spent on a “congestion-busting project”.
Despite obvious opposition to the sign, an RACQ spokeswoman said the motoring body was not aware of any issues or crashes due to the light sign.
“We don’t believe the sign is distracting,” she said.
“It doesn’t have overly bright lighting, it doesn’t flash or cause any imminent danger to motorists.”
She said if drivers had concerns over distractions or the potential for crashes, they could report them to the Transport Department.
It had been reported police were fining motorists for slowing down and “rubbernecking” at the site, but a police spokeswoman said that could not be confirmed.
She said police had no record of formal complaints.
THIS (MONEY) COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER SPENT ON EDUCATING YOUNG DRIVERS ABOUT ROAD SAFETY.
RUSSELL INGALL