Seal our road: Tom Price residents

There has been a renewed push to complete the alignment and sealing of the direct road between Karratha and Tom Price; a move which could cut the travel time for non-four-wheel-drive vehicles almost by half.

Picture by Cameron Myles: Cecilia Fernandez with the petitions she collected.

Tom Price resident Cecilia Fernandez has collected more than 900 signatures from residents of the inland town in a petition asking for funding to be allocated for the road to be sealed.

She said she planned to pass on the signatures to her local member so the argument could be put before Parliament.

About 110km of road from Karratha inland has already been sealed and about 25km from Tom Price out to Karratha has also been sealed.

To travel via the inland route, travellers currently need permission from Rio Tinto to use a privately-owned road.

Ms Fernandez is pushing to have funding allocated by the State Government to complete

stages three and four of the alignment, a move which she said would require about 155km of road to be sealed.

For residents of Tom Price like Kelly Waller, who travels to Karratha regularly for orthodontist appointments, the sealing of the road would turn a weekend away

from home into a day trip.

“I could go easily by myself, I wouldn’t feel like I would have to go with my husband – for security(and for) changing tyres,” she said.

“It would be so much quicker and I could do it in one day. We wouldn’t stay the night because it wouldn’t take us so long to get over there; it wouldn’t be as exhausting for us.”

For residents of Tom Price who don’t have a 4WD and are, therefore, not in a position to travel on the unsealed Rio Tinto road, the only other option is to take the route provided by the Nanutarra Wittenoom and North West Coastal Highway roads – a drive which can take more than six hours.

Mrs Waller said she felt the trip along the sealed route was more dangerous due to the amount of time spent on the road.

“Why should we be so isolated? We’re missing out on so many things here, being in a regional area, that we have to go to Karratha … it’s our only option,” she said.

Pilbara MLA Tom Stephens said he planned to put the petition before Parliament before it breaks for the end of the year.