Really, Perth? Reports of prang at new Hester Avenue interchange

Hannah Barry

Published: August 4 2017 - 11:50AM

Perth, this is why we can't have nice things.

The new Mitchell Freeway extension had been open for use all of three-and-a-half hours when a prang occurred at the new exit.

A member of the public reported a minor car accident at the Hester Avenue interchange at around 6am, heading eastbound.

WA Police attended the scene, and Main Roads WA said a responder team was sent to the location.

However the prang was already cleared by the time Main Roads arrived.

The Hester Avenue exit uses a "groundbreaking" new design – a "dogbone" intersection model.

The model means two roundabouts are used on either side of the freeway exit, rather than traffic light signals.

On Wednesday, City of Wanneroo mayor Tracey Roberts raised concerns about the design, and said she hoped Main Roads WA would monitor how drivers approached the intersection.

"When you drive along Hester, you can see that there will be some concerns to how the community manoeuvre around that particular area," Ms Roberts added.

"We've also got cyclists and pedestrians in that area. I am really hopeful that Main Roads would monitor very, very carefully.

"They said that there could be a few problems at the top of the freeway. It is apparently a groundbreaking new design, so it will be very interesting to see how successful or otherwise it is."

The opening of the freeway extension attracted a bevy of politicians keen to be pictured at the ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday.

This story was found at: http://www.watoday.com.au/wa-news/really-perth-reports-of-prang-at-new-hester-avenue-interchange-20170804-gxp8kp.html