East Gippsland Shire Council has voted to temporarily suspend its Council Road Management Plan (RMP) until March 30, 2024, to ensure that road maintenance rules do not force a closure of roads that were extensively damaged by recent heavy rains and flooding that hit the region.

The recent flood events resulted in extensive damage, which has so far been assessed as 213 road-related infrastructure defects and four reports of damage to bridges.

Mayor Cr Tom Crook backed the suspension, noting that it was in the best interests of the affected communities.

“We’re looking at extensive repairs to address what is significant flooding damage to many of these roads. Without a suspension of the Road Management Plan, those roads might have had to remain closed for months as they do not currently meet the standards mandated by our RMP.

“It’s not possible in the short to medium term to ensure that these flood-affected roads meet the level of defect tolerance set out in the RMP, so it’s far better that we suspend the management plan rules for a few months and allow people to continue to carefully use these roads, despite a less than perfect surface.”

Council is actively engaged in identifying and scheduling repairs, estimated to take up to three months for initial fixes and longer for roads requiring more significant remediation. Where roads are damaged, they will be sign-posted and drivers will be asked to modify their driving speeds accordingly to ensure the roads can still be safely used.

Road users are asked to allow longer travel times if they are travelling to or through areas where local roads have been flood-damaged or recently inundated.

The temporary suspension of the RMP will not impact the general maintenance of local roads not affected by recent flooding.

“We took this approach to suspending the RMP after the 2019/20 bushfires. It is permitted within the RMP framework and really is the best option after natural disasters,” Cr Crook said.

As soon as Council can fully comply with the RMP regarding resourcing and repairs, the RMP will be reinstated.

The Road Management Plan and current road closure information is available here.