How much is a stop sign?
I write in support of the concerns of Sharon Bursa about the Darnum Allambee Road/ Parkers Road intersection (Gaz 30/10).
As a member of Darnum Ellinbank CFA I have attended a number of collisions at this intersection and I find it puzzling that nothing is done to even try to manage it better.
It is claimed that various safety measures are in place, but the claimed “rumble strips” were taken away recently and the current measures simply don’t seem to work sufficiently.
It is claimed that the intersection does not meet the criteria for a stop sign and that accidents at the corner have been attributed to driver error.
That may be true, but something about this corner makes it prone to these accidents, more than others in the area, and major injury or even death seems a heavy penalty for a driver error.
What possible cost is there in replacing a give way sign with a stop sign? What is the problem if a sign is placed somewhere that doesn’t quite meet the strict criteria?
Why is it not worth some small additional cost for extra warnings (such as replacing the rumble strips with additional signage) that might reduce the driver error that seems to plague this corner. Paul Strickland, Cloverlea
I fully support Gary Payne’s comments (Gaz 30/10) regarding the Alberton Football League. To put it bluntly the AFL is stuffing up country football and this trickles down to all country leagues throughout the state.
No one knows country football and all the problems that go with it better than the individual clubs that have been battling through thick and thin for decades.
The first the local community heard of all the changes was through the media.
Why haven't the commissioners/directors not learnt a lesson from the 15 clubs that were the EDFL just a couple of years ago.
It simply does not work. One full round, and three teams play twice, then there are catch up rounds and byes to even out the draw. Your own club may not play for three to four weekends over the course of the season along with Interleague and split rounds.
I stated in this paper a few years ago that when the AFL and EDFL had a combined total of 30 clubs that it was logical to split to make three leagues of 10 clubs. Two full rounds, 18 matches, the fairest model for all concerned.
The MGFL has been a great example of a 10 team competition for many years and now they are being told to accept the remaining teams from the AFL.
This problem was brought about by letting Inverloch/Konwak and Korumburra both the closest clubs on the remaining western border of the reduced AFL jump ship and enter the WGFL making the remaining clubs untenable and weakening what they were trying to keep propped up.
Why should Yarragon be told to join the EDFL because the Warragul Industrials want to join the WGFL. The MGFL is not broken so why are the commissioners trying to fix it. It is only a couple of years since all the debacle surrounding the splitting up of the 15 team EDFL to the now two ten team competitions which is running smoothly. And now we have not had two seasons from what the commission had put in place and they are trying to change it all again.
The control of the clubs and where they wish to play should be left solely with the club itself. And in a democratic society the other clubs and leagues involved then vote on the matter at hand as to the outcome.
If the commissioners want to do something for country football then find out why so many juniors are leaving the game in alarming numbers, and then the clubs may say, well done good and faithful servants you are listening to our plight how are you going to rectify this.
And on another note junior football should never have been raised to under 18s. You cannot legally drive a car, consume alcohol and vote and be classified as a junior player. It should be under 17s and under 15s state wide.
Bruce Pratt, Warragul South