Regional road condition maps / Main Roads WA.

Entrant: Pre-disaster Category, Federal/State Government Stream, Safer Comunities Awards 2005.

It is true to say that the best plans for developing pre-disaster projects arise out of disasters themselves and the lessons gained from the experience. The Regional Road Condition Map is an initiative that was born out of severe Tropical Cyclone Fay and Monty and the significant impact that resulted on the North West road network (particularly in the Pilbara and Gascoyne regions) and community in March 2004. The Regional Road Condition Map consists of a regional North West road map designed by officers from the Pilbara region in close partnership with the Gascoyne and Kimberley regions. The onset of Cyclone Monty at the end of February followed weeks of floods in the Eastern Pilbara. With the eventual crossing of the coast in the West Pilbara between Fortescue and Mardie Station in early March, Cyclone Monty deteriorated into a rain bearing depression which created havoc with road closures and extensive damage to major roads. Both tourists and locals were stranded along the road network, unable to reach their destinations. Main Roads Gascoyne and Pilbara staff were kept busy with phone calls and visits from people wishing to get home to Carnarvon, Pannawonica, Paraburdoo, Karratha and Port Hedland for work, as well as bus and transport companies heading north and south with tourists and freight respectively. In the months of February and March 2004, both the Pilbara and Gascoyne regional offices received over 5,000 calls about road conditions due to Cyclone Fay and Monty. The Regional Road Condition Map has been designed as a visual aid to assist all road users to read the road condition report supplied by the three regional offices and it provides easy advice for all road users on how to contact Main Roads Western Australia 24 hrs/day, 7 days/ week to obtain the latest information on road conditions. The map was developed primarily to assist customers in the North West who had difficulties in reading and comprehending the road condition report and also to assist their understanding of the road network. The Regional Road Condition Map has been developed by Main Roads, in close partnership with key stakeholders in the North West, including LEMC (Local Emergency Management Committees) in the Gascoyne and Pilbara region. Constructive feedback received from stakeholders has been incorporated in the final map design and the eventual rollout of maps, accompanying business cards and fax holders throughout the 3 regional areas of Gascoyne, Pilbara and Kimberley. It has been a project that has taken over 12 months to develop -from its inception to its delivery. Main Roads Pilbara has consulted extensively with the wider community, transport bodies, emergency response agencies and the general north west road user to develop a map that is easy to read and use in the event of such future emergencies.