It could be many months before the Mt Baw Baw Tourist Rd through Noojee, Icy Creek and Tanjil Bren re-open to traffic.
That’s the view of Baw Baw shire mayor Danny Goss after inspecting some of the 13 major hazards along the road created by wash-outs, landslips and fallen trees less than two weeks ago.
Cr Goss joined State Minister for Roads Ben Carroll and representatives of Disaster Recovery and Regional Roads Victoria on Monday of last week and looked at some of the most severely damaged, and still partly accessible, sections of the road.
The road is the major link for visitors to the mountain from Melbourne and West Gippsland.
The only access to Mt Baw Baw Alpine Resort remaining open is via the unsealed South Face Rd from Moe.
South Face Rd is maintained by Baw Baw Shire on behalf of Regional Roads Victoria and Cr Goss said he had impressed to Mr Carroll and later in a Zoom meeting with assistant treasurer Danny Pearson the need for extra funding for maintenance of the road, especially during the winter ski season.
Cr Goss said Mr Pearson has sought the meeting to hear about the effects in Baw Baw shire of storm and flood damage.
The mayor said he was shocked by the amount of damage and the difficult tasks ahead of repairing sections where parts of the road had “fallen away”.
“It is very steep terrain and getting in the necessary equipment to the sites, let alone making repairs and restoring the road, would be major challenges”.
Work started last week to provide safe access for reconstruction and rectification work to prevent further damage and provide access for emergency vehicles.
Cr Goss said the closure of the road would impact businesses at Neerim South, Noojee, Icy Creek and Tanjil Bren that serve through traffic to and from the mountain, including those providing chain hire.
The alpine resort was also looking to a strong period with bookings and day visitors during school holidays that got underway this week, particularly after a 2020 snow season heavily impacted by COVID restrictions and lockdowns.