The battle over a new Bunnings super store in Tempe, which poses a threat to the safety of local pedestrians, will come to a head tomorrow when the matter is heard by the State Government’s Eastern Sydney Regional Planning Panel.
Inner West Councillors are supporting the residents of Tempe and the students and families of Tempe Public School in urging the NSW Government to revisit the traffic management plan for the proposed Bunnings development in Tempe.
The Tempe Bunnings superstore will be the biggest in Sydney and will see thousands of extra cars every week funnelled into narrow streets. Council’s traffic study showed negative impacts on 15 local streets and 1,600 cars a day down Union Street, right past Tempe Primary School.
The residents of Tempe would welcome the new Bunnings development but have been calling for a review of the traffic arrangements for years. Under the current proposal, the amount of traffic would more than triple on nearby narrow streets.
Council and residents are urging the NSW Government to add a set of traffic lights on the Princes Highway which will help to relieve the anticipated congestion and safety issues.
Local residents and families of Tempe Public School are calling on Roads Minister Natalie Ward to see for herself why the residents are concerned with the safety of their kids.
Inner West Mayor, Darcy Byrne said, “Bunnings are playing hard ball with residents in Tempe and looking for their mega-store to be waived through without proper pedestrian safety measures being implemented. It’s crunch time now and we need the NSW Government and Bunnings to act on the very reasonable requests from the local community for a signalised crossing.”
Councillor Mat Howard said, “Tempe residents aren’t asking for much here. All along, the community has been calling for a simple solution that is good for Bunnings and good for the people who live here, including the kids that use these streets each and every day to walk to school.”
“The Minister for Metropolitan Roads could fix this problem with the stroke of a pen. Transport for NSW has at least indicated a willingness to come back to the table if a further risk assessment and feasibility study is completed. We’ve agreed to do that. We’re now calling on the Planning Panel to give us the chance to do this important work and then make a decision based on all the facts.”
Inner West Mayor, Darcy Byrne, Councillor Mat Howard and local parents and residents will gather at 1.30 today at the Union Street entrance to Tempe Public School to call on Bunnings and the Government to rethink their dangerous Local Traffic Management Plan.
