Chest-high grass at roundabout creates driver visibility hazard
Chest-high grass at a Lockwood roundabout blocks driver vision at an intersection with a crash history.
Grass in a traffic island at Calder Alternative Highway and Bendigo-Maryborough Road in Lockwood, Victoria, has grown to chest height. The grass blocks driver vision in small cars.
A local resident who walks the area daily says this is the worst overgrowth in eleven years. The resident fears another accident at an intersection with a history of crashes.
That history includes a truck rollover last February. The region is recovering from the Harcourt bushfire in January 2026.
That fire destroyed more than 50 houses and 4000 hectares. A parliamentary inquiry into the 2025-26 summer bushfires found concern about managing roadsides.
Experts warned that tall grass acts as a fire path, not a firebreak. The Victorian transport department is preparing for heavy roadside work as spring approaches.
- Peter Dixon
- Resident
- January 9, 2026
- Fire start date
- 17 kilometres away in Ravenswood South
- Distance from fire start
Why it mattersPoor roadside maintenance creates two hazards. First, there are immediate traffic safety risks. Second, it increases how fast bushfires spread in fire-prone areas.
AustraliaUnmanaged vegetation along Victorian roadsides is creating safety hazards for drivers and raising bushfire risks in recovery zones.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 2 d ago
