What's the deal Lawrie, Gabbie, Jeff and colleagues?

I'm wondering what is going on. Initially Gosford City Council voted unanimously to reject amalgamation with Wyong. You'd have thought that would be that. You'd have thought we would continue the partnerships that we share with Wyong, but we'd recognize that the move for amalgamation is neither warranted not appropriate.

Next, late in 2015, the conservatives amongst the elected Councillors in Gosford changed their position. Under pressure from the Baird Government, of financial penalty and exclusion from the process (that was allegedly going to proceed with or without council consent) they voted to "accept the inevitable". Their rationalization was that they needed to ensure a seat at the table. They had been coerced. Pure and simple coercion.

Now, this is where it gets even more complicated... Today we hear that former Gosford Mayor, Lawrie Mckinna has rejected an offer to assist with the committee that will oversee the process from here on in.... What is the deal? We had these Councillors in place, representing us... They changed their conviction so that they'd cement their ongoing involvement... Now this?

BTW there are some councils that were under the same pressure to comply, that stood strongly against amalgamation. Some councils have fended off the same attack that made us buckle under... They will be permitted to continue as a stand alone council.

The Council members that capitulated must be looking back and wondering about their final decision... Will they all reject the same offer that Lawrie has rejected? It appears they got it so, very, wrong. Now we have to live with their mis-read of the situation.

Looking ahead, we now have to fund the very expensive amalgamation that we didn't want (council community consultation led to the original unanimous rejection).

Just as has occurred in Qld, reversal of amalgamation will be on the table under a Labor State Government.

Stand by for further development.... I have a feeling that this is not over, not by a long shot.

Footnote: Labor Councillors Vicki Scott and Jim Mcfadyen originally rejected amalgamation and they stood firm, as did Greens Councillor Hillary Morris.

Roundabout or Traffic Lights? What is your preference?

There is a plan to upgrade an intersection near my home.

http://www.rms.nsw.gov.au/documents/projects/central-coast/empire-bay-scenic-cochrane/empire-bar-drive-notification-1604.pdf

I have a feeling that it will be very expensive to complete.

The local member Mr Crouch (as a candidate) parked his Ute near the intersection with signage stating that he (and Mike Baird) would FIX this road. He is to be congratulated for securing the planning money.

Anyone that has any insight into this type of thing will know that "planning" is not fixing (planning must happen first of course). I look forward to hearing that Mr Crouch has secured the funding to FIX the congestion problem. It will of course be in the multi millions of dollars most likely (my guesstimate, happy to be corrected) skywards of $15mil.

The plan in part, is to remove the existing roundabout, duplicate some lanes to add turning lanes, widen the road, remove vegetation add traffic lights and redirect some traffic from roads that lead onto Empire Bay Drive. Drivers on Sundowner Ave will no longer be able to turn right on Empire Bay Drive.

The recent Terrigal Drive / Charles Kay Drive intersection at Terrigal is said to have needed funding of $25mil from the State Government. I assume there may have been funding input by the federal Government also.

This project is very similar, the traffic numbers are similar the main difference is the Kincumber intersection is a cross-road project where as Terrigal was a T-Intersection. The Terrigal project covers a larger surface area of road.

One million dollars is set aside just for the planning processes. From a cursory look over the document it seems that there will be minimal improvement if any. Have a look at just how short the widened strips are. Will that really move the volumes of traffic through quicker than now?

Could the option of a larger dual lane roundabout with longer sections of road widening give a better result?

I understand that roundabouts allow for swifter and smother through movement of vehicles, what do you think?

The combination of roundabout and traffic lights works very well at the Karalta Rd / Central Coast Hwy intersection. Will this end up being just another way to move a bottleneck a little further up the road or will it be the answer?

Of course I hold no qualifications that make me an expert. However, I do look forward to your input and advice.