Residents at busy Aussie beach fume over council's 'idiotic' move: 'Wake up'
Residents in Sydney's east say the the concrete blocks not only inhibit traffic flow but are also damaging cars.
Frustrated residents have urged the local council to "pull their finger out" and do something about a well-known problem that's "destroying" cars and causing chaos at a busy intersection.
Locals in Coogee in Sydney's east say two "ridiculous" concrete blocks in the middle of the road are to blame for countless damaged cars and "hours" long congestion at the corner of Arden Street and Coogee Bay Road — but the council has confirmed they won't be removed and explained why.
Raising the issue was one angry local man who took aim at "Coogee's finest architecture" in a scathing post on Facebook this week. "When is Randwick Council going to pull their finger out of their bum and do something about this?" he asked urging council to "wake up".
"Daily we watch cars destroy themselves on this, and the traffic congestion from not having a left turning lane is simply Third World!"
Locals slam 'ridiculous' road feature
Photos shared online show two seemingly useless concrete blocks sticking out of the gutter on the far left lane. Between them is a black grill with a hole in the centre where a tree once stood. They sit a couple of metres back from the corner of the two busy roads and behind them, several parking spots are available.
Other residents agreed the concrete blocks are problematic for several reasons and called for them to be removed. They're easily missed when approaching the corner in a vehicle, some argued, and not having access to the left lane causes traffic.
"[It happened to] my car thanks to this ridiculous outcrop of cement," one said. "It's just stupidity," said another. Meanwhile, another said the decision to keep them is "idiotic".
"Every time I go down there I say the same thing. It stops the flow of traffic able to turn left causing bank up of cars," admitted a third who agreed there have been a number of cars damaged after hitting them.
Some suggested the blocks and at least one parking space should be removed to create a left-turning lane which could help with the flow of traffic. While another said there's been no tree "for months".
Council responds to backlash
Speaking to Yahoo News Australia on Tuesday, a spokesperson for Randwick Council confirmed the concrete blocks serve a purpose and will not be removed. They act as a wheel stop for the parking spots directly in front of it, and it's a tree surround for where a tree once stood.
A large tree was damaged after being hit by trucks or vehicles "a number of times" while attempting to park — which is a regular problem. Council is in the process of replacing the tree which will make the blocks "much more obvious" to motorists, the spokesperson said.
Additionally, removing the tree altogether is not an option either because "trees add a lot of value to an urban environment".
"Trees add a real sense of place and a presence. A better solution might be if people just didn't hit the tree in the first place," the council spokesperson told Yahoo. There's also no intention of turning the section of road into a turning lane, as suggested by some residents, which would mean not only losing trees but street parking as well.
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