Council
4 December, 2025
Dodgy roads failing taxpayers, MP says
SOUTH West Coast MP Roma Britnell has criticized the Victorian Government and the Department of Transport and Planning for failing taxpayers on road safety and maintenance.
Ms Britnell said damning evidence presented to the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee (PAEC) showed the department’s own annual requirement to renew eight to ten percent of the road network when in reality the figures being fixed were only one to 1.5 percent.
“This is not right,” she said.
“The government is inflating expectations and misrepresenting the data.
“The department’s own deputy secretary admitted they believed they were performing well and that roads are safe, yet the government continues to spin the numbers to suit its narrative.”
Ms Britnell said further evidence heard by the PAEC revealed less than one per cent of Victorians seeking compensation for damage to their vehicles caused by the state of the roads had been successful this year – with just once successful applicant out of 196 claims lodged.
She also slammed how “dramatically” short the government had fallen in meeting its own road maintenance targets, as the PAEC heard the state had patched 200,000 potholes over the financial year – nearly one for every hundred metres of state government road.
Ms Britnell said the department secretary making positive comments regarding the state’s performance on roads was “extraordinary”.
“Every Victorian motorist can see how badly our roads are being maintained – it’s staggering,” she said.
“Pothole patching is not a measure of success – it’s a measure of how badly the government has failed on preventative maintenance.”
Ms Britnell accused the government of hiding behind distorted figures rather than addressing the real issues.
“Victorians deserve transparency,” she said.
“Instead, the government is cherry picking statistics to paint a false picture.
“The department should be held accountable for its failures, and the government must stop misleading the public about road safety outcomes.”
She stressed the community cannot be reassured by hollow claims when the evidence shows a mismatch between what is demanded and what is delivered.
“This is a government more interested in protecting its image than protecting Victorians on our roads,” Ms Britnell said.
“That is unacceptable.”
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