Perth Voice Interactive

FOR years the Scarborough Beach Road and Green Street intersection in Mt Hawthorn has been a confusing tangle of odd angles that results in countless prangs and dire congestion.

It’s a known blackspot which made the latest RAC top 10 worst intersections for Perth because of a “poor overall intersection design causing confusion and risk-taking by drivers turning right onto Scarborough Beach Road.”

Adding to the mix is the multitude of crossovers and merging lanes as drivers approach the intersection.

The Voice has been running stories about long-gone Vincent councillors wanting to fix the place up for near-on a decade, but nothing has ever eventuated.

Labor’s federal candidate for Perth Tim Hammond reckons he can get it done, having convinced federal Labor transport shadow Anthony Albanese to promise $3 million to fix up the intersection following a visit there last Sunday.

Dangerous

“My own experience told me that it was a dangerous intersection,” Mr Hammond told the Voice.

“It became very clear doorknocking that area, [voters were saying] ‘if there’s one thing that you can get done in this part of the world, please fix up that intersection’”.

He says the feds have to defer to traffic management experts (and it all has to be done in conjunction with Vincent council and Main Roads) but one idea floated was a roundabout at the Green Street/Main Street intersection instead of the risky crossover there now.

People responding to the RAC survey of hair-raising intersections also suggested closing the right turn median from Green Street onto Scarborough Beach Road and diverting traffic via Merredin Street.

by DAVID BELL