Facilities and Services Group Manager Greg Kable said fixing the Port Stephens road networks continues to be a priority for Council and the community.

“This announcement is great news for Port Stephens – the repair and rehabilitation of our roads can’t be funded by Council alone – we need the support of our State Government to help us fast track repairs and ensure our roads are safe,” Mr Kable said.

Over the past year, Council has secured over $5 million in grant funds to support the repair of potholes and road damage from recent storm events.

Following the last round of grant funding, Council has begun the first stage of road repairs to Rookes Road, Salt Ash.

“We’ve had a huge amount of damage to our road network over the past 2 years and Rookes Road was one of our worst,” said Mr Kable.

“Last week we started a heavy patching and rehabilitation program on Rookes Road, along with some minor drainage works.

“There’ll be some impact on residents and road users during these works which will see the top section of the road removed, repairs made to the damaged material and a 2 part bitumen seal,” he added.

Council has confirmed that other funding recently received is supporting other projects such as the $2.4 million upgrade to Avenue of the Allies, Tanilba Bay to improve safety and reliability.

Mayor Ryan Palmer said it’s great to see funding commitments for road repairs and rehabilitation in Port Stephens.

“A high quality road network not only increases safety, it reduces congestion and helps improve connections by allowing the community to move around our region more effectively,” Mayor Palmer said.

“We know it’s been a tough wait for the residents who use this Rookes Road – we appreciate their patience and although this first lot of works won’t fix everything, we know it’s a start,” he added.

For more information and regular updates about the Rookes Road project visit portstephens.nsw.gov.au/rookes-road.