He was commenting on the possibility of the speed limit on the Gore Highway being reduced from 110km/hr to 100km/hr.

“Just imagine the hue and cry if the Queensland Government did that to the Bruce Highway north of Brisbane.

“It wouldn’t happen.

“But down here is not a priority,” he said.

And that’s despite the economic value of the produce transported along the highway every day.

He also said road users should not believe that the decision is a road safety issue.

“The term ‘road safety’ is a distraction from the real issue,” he said.

“The fact is that the Gore Highway should never have been allowed to fall into a state of disrepair where reducing the speed limit was even a consideration.

“It should be a 110km/hr road and the only reason is might not be is because of the condition of the road. The good citizens of Goondiwindi and district should not be forced into having to travel that road at 100km/hr purely of the Sate Government’s neglect.

“How did the road get like that? That’s the real issue,” he said.

“My advice is, ‘Don’t accept second best’,” he said.

The possibility of a reduction in the speed limit was raised last week by Goondiwindi Regional Council Deputy-Mayor, Cr Rick Kearney.

As a former Officer-in-Charge of the Goondiwindi Traffic Branch, he saw at first-hand the carnage and the devastation left behind by road accidents.

“They are terrible things, for the families who lose loved ones, and for the emergency services such as police, ambulance officers, fire brigade members who have to deal with the aftermath,” he said.

“It’s a nonsense to blame the numbers of accidents on speed alone. This is just a knee-jerk response to the reduction on the Newell Highway.

“I was critical of that move, and I’m just as critical of this one.

“Drivers who speed will still speed, whether it is 110km/hr or 100km/hr. That won’t stop them from doing 120 plus.