Mr PEDERICK (Hammond) (11:13): I rise to speak to this Public Works report in regard to the Mount Barker roundabout. Certainly, it is a roundabout I go around many times in my role as the member for Hammond, either heading to Strathalbyn, if I am coming out of Adelaide, or coming from Strathalbyn through Mount Barker to Adelaide.

It is quite a usable roundabout and I have talked to quite a few Mount Barker residents about the priorities and certainly this roundabout will do some of the much-needed work in alleviating traffic stress in the Mount Barker region, especially when you look at the town that is essentially somewhere around 20 per cent of its growth plan. There was not much planning in the growth plan, as already indicated by the member for Heysen, so everything is done on an as-needs basis as time moves forward.

In my consultation with people who travel that route and the other intersecting roads into Mount Barker, the freeway interchange is one that comes up all the time as what should have been the priority in regard to getting into and out of Mount Barker. If you are coming from Murray Bridge into Mount Barker, you get to the freeway interchange to turn right towards Totness on the other side, and it is virtually impossible at times—most times, in fact—to turn right at that intersection. Notwithstanding, you usually give up, flick left, go into Mount Barker, find the first roundabout opportunity and turn around and come back that way, which is quite inefficient.

One thing that was a bit alarming—and the member for Heysen was there the other day with the football at the summit—was traffic banked up on those single-lane each-way roads. I must commend all the people involved in the traffic management there, working with council with the situation they had in getting those roughly 7,000 people in and out of the football at the summit. It was an excellent game. I know it was only a simulation game, so I am assuming Port Adelaide were simulating their chances that day, because they got beaten, sadly, but it was a great display of what can be done in regional communities. Sadly, that oval is not utilised enough, but that is a longer story. It is certainly good to see the AFL using it.

The Mount Barker freeway interchange project was part of the Hahndorf project, which got dismantled by the Labor governments both state and federal. It was a $250 million project that was put up under the former Liberal government that we fully supported on a state basis on an 80:20 funding level. Sadly, that has gone away. We are told it is still coming, but I will believe it when I see it. That $40-odd million greatly needs to be spent on that interchange to ease traffic.

One of the biggest issues in a growth area like Mount Barker is what we do if there is a fire. I know there was a report done many years ago on Blackwood, which is similar, having small streets and access points where even fire trucks are directed, 'Don't go down there because you will get caught.' The alarming report from that time was—and it was quite a while back now; it might be over a decade—if a horrendous fire goes through Blackwood, there will be 300 deaths. That is something pretty shocking to contemplate, and we certainly hope that does not happen.

The beauty of our firefighting service is that as we move forward we have better aircraft to work with the people on the ground in alleviating situations. But it is a very sobering thought that, if you cannot get out, there will be many people sadly paying the price. We certainly do not want that to happen. I know that emergency service workers, whether they be the Country Fire Service volunteers or the Metropolitan Fire Service, will do all they can in any situation to save everyone and maintain their lives.

In regard to talking about fire safety, I just want to note something that the member for Kavel said in a quote in The Advertiser of 23 November 2023 about emergency vehicles getting stuck in traffic congestion on the bridge over the freeway. The local MP, Dan Cregan, said that in the event of a bushfire, the interchange would be overwhelmed 'instantly'. That is something that needs to be taken into account with these road upgrades. I did have a conversation in the chamber with the member for Kavel about whether money for the roundabout could be put into the interchange. He said he had had that conversation with the minister and that it was not happening because it was a different bucket of money.

Certainly, this roundabout will alleviate some of the issues with the roundabout that is there currently. I believe, sadly, the fish and chip shop will disappear, and there will be some land compulsorily acquired from the high school and surrounding areas to make all those double-lane roads work with the expanded roundabout situation.

I urge the government to fast track the work on the freeway interchange at Mount Barker, not just for standard access but so that in the likely event—and I will call it, in the likely event—of bushfire in that same area people can quickly get access to safety in those adverse conditions. With that, we support the works for the roundabout but note that other infrastructure needs building in that vicinity.