Plan now for bypass
Both Labor and the Coalition have promised $500,000 to fix the highway from Jervis Bay Road south. This is, of course, a project that will take many years to roll out. A matter of urgency is provision for a much safer right hand turn out of Jervis Bay Road. You can do all the improvements of the highway, like south where the four lanes merge but you still will have Nowra as a choke point. South of the Shoalhaven River bridge there are seven sets of traffic lights and six roundabouts before you leave South Nowra. It is urgent the Nowra/Bomaderry bypass planning is fast tracked on the identified services corridor beginning south of Meroo and crossing the Shoalhaven near Nowra Zoo. Then as Stage one, the bypass should be planned to meet the highway near the BTU Road. Stage two could, at a later time connect to Main Road 92 from where the bypass turned to the east.
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The bypass must be set in motion now and no matter who is in government a commitment must to be made to provide funding with the state government to get some action. Decisions have to be made before our options are gone. Otherwise, together with the proposed large increases in population north and south of the Shoalhaven River and tourism visitation, Nowra will not cope.
D. Phelps, Parma
Help those in need
I was mortified to hear Nationals candidate, Katrina Hodgkinson, advocate for property investors who use negative gearing on multiple properties whilst watching Paul Murray's Pub Test live on Sky News on Monday night with the federal candidates for Gilmore. If Katrina had any understanding of the electorate, where the median total household income from employment is a mere $38,802 (Shoalhaven region, 2016 Census) she would know that the majority of Gilmore residents are not multiple property owners, who use negative gearing.
The NSW Council of Social Service reports in Kiama, Nowra and Ulladulla, there is a wait of 10-plus years for a two-bedroom social housing rental. If you can afford to live comfortably in one property, you are very fortunate. If you can afford to run multiple properties at a loss to receive a tax break, you are far wealthier than the average Gilmore resident.
If Ms. Hodgkinson is happy to advocate for people who own multiple properties, she should have no issues standing up and advocating for those in need of affordable, safe housing, such as first home buyers, lower income earners, the homeless and the disadvantaged. Gilmore is the most marginal seat in NSW, and a lot of people really are on the margins and in need of desperate help.
If Ms Hodgkinson is happy to advocate for people who own multiple properties, she should have no issues standing up and advocating for those in need of affordable, safe housing, such as first home buyers, lower income earners, the homeless and the disadvantaged. Gilmore is the most marginal seat in NSW, and a lot of people really are on the margins and in need of desperate help.
J. Miles, Nowra
Make terms four years
With the yes, no maybe distractions over the past two weeks it should be obvious, we need a set election date for each federal election and not a three year term but a proper four year election period.
These changes should make our system more civilised and I will not compare a four year term with the USA system as their system is possibly the worst election system one could contemplate and as we all know, not all eligible persons vote, which is why they get such Presidents as Donald Trump.
We must retain our system because if you do not vote you have no cause to complain about any government but a four year parliament with a set date is one which I would prefer.