Two generations of Mungindi school bus drivers praise Caloona Road upgrades
John Picton drove the Mungindi school bus along a route that includes Caloona Road for almost 30 years. In that time the road was closed many times due to flooding, leading John to explore creative ways of getting the local kids to school.
“In some cases, we boated the kids across a creek, using a little motorboat to get them to the other side so they could access roads that weren’t flooded yet,” said the ‘born and bred’ local and grandfather-of-four. “When Caloona Road gets sealed the bus run will be really good.”
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About the project
John’s son, Adam Picton has been following in his father’s footsteps for the past three years, driving the local school bus along the same route. He has also encountered similar challenges along Caloona Road, which is set to benefit from bitumen sealing and other upgrades to a 6 kilometre stretch of previously unsealed surface, thanks to $4.5 million in funding under the NSW Government’s Restart NSW Fixing Country Roads program, plus Moree Plains Shire Council and industry contributions.
“As someone who drives on Caloona Road every day I’m very happy about the work that’s underway,” Adam said.
“Over time the road has deteriorated and it’s constantly changing – week to week, day to day - and I’m driving a 40-seater bus on an unsealed dirt road – it’s not like I’m driving a land cruiser.”
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Community benefits
Local farmer Geoffrey Locke grows as much as 10,000 tonnes of grain each year, in addition to farming livestock. He relies on Caloona Road for property access and the delivery of his produce across the state and interstate.
“I’m a 4th generation farmer – and I’m 62 years old - and I remember my father complaining about getting bogged on the Caloona Road,” said Mr Locke, who estimates 200 to 400 road trains and upward of 1000 work and private vehicles use the road each year in support of his business.
“When we can’t access the roads, we can’t send our produce out and we take a loss,” he said.
“There have been massive semi-trailers carting 60 tonnes of grain that get bogged to the axles and it takes a huge 4WD tractor to get them out.”
Improving safety outcomes
Mr Locke expects the sealing work to improve safety outcomes along the route, particularly for the local school bus.
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“Our kids were on the school bus when there was an accident on Caloona Road, when the bus driver could hardly see due to the amount of dust on the road and ended up running into the back of a truck,” he said.
“Luckily no one was hurt too bad, there were just a few bruises, but you can imagine how the guy driving the truck felt when he first realised what had happened. No one wants anything like that to happen again.”