Being the squeaky wheel is more important during election periods like now. However, there is another skill that voters need to have. That is a well-tuned ability to see through political spin.

Last week the State Government’s announcement that the Newell Highway will receive 30 new overtaking lanes should have been welcomed universally by everyone who uses the highway. However, people in the know saw through the announcement as a re-announcement. In fact, on August 18 last year, the Daily Liberal reported on the plan and construction of the lanes.

It’s these sort of phoney announcements, or re-announcements that really make people mad with senior bureaucrats and politicians. Residents are rightfully calling out for their fair share of tax dollars to be reinvested into their area, but the spin machine of government departments are able to confuse things by manipulating the media cycle.

All this comes off the back of an Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) and roads ministry that absolutely refuse to even negotiate Dubbo’s serious concerns about the Newell Highway.

The coming year this will be crucial in the ongoing development and growth of Dubbo. The traffic situation in this growing regional city needs to be addressed as a priority. It’s really not hard to understand that the River Street Bridge proposal will only partially divert the Newell Highway, and will do nothing to reduce the amount of cars that travel on Whylandra Street in West Dubbo. Their solution to convert the roundabout to traffic lights is welcome, but can hardly be described as being a proper remedy to the traffic gridlock that West Dubbo residents face every day when trying to get to and from work.

In the coming decades, there are thousands of new house blocks planned for the south-west area of Dubbo. How the LH Ford Bridge and Whylandra Street will cope with dramatically increased traffic flows is a problem that must be addressed. The RMS even concedes that the Newell Highway will see substantial growth over the next decade yet instead of working on solutions they prefer to make re-announcements hoping for favourable media coverage.

The RMS and roads ministry need to remember that we have had a survey of Dubbo Regional ratepayers indicate that over 70% of residents oppose the River Street Bridge, with 95% of people wanting a ring road.  The Australian Taxpayers Alliance has openly condemned the spend as a waste of taxpayers’ money, while there are people who look to the Forbes, Parkes and Moree Newell Highway bypasses and wonder why Dubbo is being treated as second class to other Newell Highway towns.

The irony is that so far in this election Dubbo residents have had some great wins. We all remember back to the council election where I was criticised as grandstanding over the issue of Dubbo Hospital car parking. Flat out denials were made that the hospital even had a car parking problem. Just over 12 months later through squeaky wheel people power the government made a marvellous announcement that a $30 million hospital car park will be constructed.

How the government can get it so right on the hospital car park announcement and yet spectacularly stuff up announcements over the Newell Highway is breathtaking to say the least!

Honest discussion and trust is desperately needed with the RMS and roads ministry. Spin and re-announcements do nothing to gain the trust of locals.