'Death trap' bollards remain in Hunter Economic Zone, despite threat to kids

Chris Mascord, of Beresfield, saw the aftermath of the crash at 5.30pm on Saturday.

"This was another serious accident. Someone has hit it hard. There are brake parts there. For brake parts to be left there, they've had to be ripped out of the vehicle," said Mr Mascord, a mechanic.

"I got out of the car and had a look and you could still smell the oil. Paint was missing from the bollards. The cement at the bottom of the bollards wasn't even cracked.

"The vehicle bounced off the bollards and hit the guard rail at the side. There are gouges in the road."

Police had no record of the accident being reported.

Mr Mascord, who drives along the route often to go four-wheel driving, called for the road to be ripped up.

A 17-year-old boy died in a single vehicle accident at the Pelaw Main road on April 8.

He was a passenger in the vehicle when it allegedly hit steel concrete bollards on the road at about 11.15pm.

After his death, he was described as a "bright and spirited young man, with an infectious smile".

The bollards that took his life are on a bridge in the middle of a long stretch of private road. The road dips and narrows right before the bollards, which were erected about a month before the accident happened.

"The day they put the bollards up, me, my missus and her dad, said 'that is a death trap, an accident waiting to happen'," Mr Mascord said.

"I'm sure they've got to have something to keep people out of there, but not massive cement poles in the middle of the road, right next to a dip. If those bollards weren't there, he would still be alive."

He said the dip in the road had "caused accidents before without the bollards there".

The dip appeared to be from mine subsidence.

"The road has sunk. There's going to be another accident.

"Of a night, you cannot see the bollards. You cannot see them until you're on top of them. Something needs to be done. Block the road off or take the bollards out.

"If they really want to do something, they need to rip that road up. There's only one business that uses that road, Ullrich Aluminium. It'd be a lot easier for them to move."

He said kids ride motorbikes in the area at night with no lights.

"They'd have no chance of seeing the bollards. I know the kids shouldn't be on the road, but that's not the point - they're going to do it."

It's a private road that is used by the public, so police consider it a public street. It is known to attract drag racing and antisocial behaviour.

On Friday and Saturday nights, Mr Mascord said he had previously seen "300 or 400 cars there".

A citizen noticed this week that the gates next to the bollards were now kept open with padlocks, rather than welding. After the latest crash, the gates were closed.

The Newcastle Herald has several times contacted a company suspected of erecting the bollards and gates, but was unable to gain any response.

Mr Mascord said there was "no point" to the gates.

"If you shut the gates, it won't stop anybody from getting in. There are bush tracks you can use to go around them," he said.

He said there was a spot on the side of the road, close to the bollards, where people park with trailers.

"It's a popular place for kids to ride their motorbikes on a weekend. Families go there," he said.

The Roads Act states that a council may "direct the owner of a private road (other than a classified road)" to carry out necessary work to "prevent the road from becoming unsafe".

Cessnock City Council said it was unable to comment due to the "coronial inquest".

Cessnock mayor Bob Pynsent said earlier this month that the bollards were dangerous.

"It definitely needs to be made safer - whether it's signage or reduced speed," Cr Pynsent said. "I would be concerned about someone else's life being lost," he said.

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