newy.com.au – Three Port Stephens roads will receive wider shoulders and new safety barriers under a $2.4 million federally funded package to be delivered by Port Stephens Council.
The 2026–27 Black Spot Program funding will support upgrades on Frost Road at Anna Bay, Newline Road at East Seaham and Lemon Tree Passage Road at Salt Ash. All three projects are in the early stages of design.
Newline Road will receive the largest allocation, with $995,000 to be spent on a 2.9-kilometre section. The work includes shoulder widening, roadside safety barriers and high-visibility line markings with rumble strips along the centre and edges of the road.
On Frost Road, a $689,800 upgrade will cover the section between Nelson Bay Road and Gan Gan Road. As well as widening shoulders and installing barriers, the council will relocate power poles and improve visibility at intersecting driveways.
The remaining $715,150 will fund wider shoulders and a flexible roadside safety barrier on Lemon Tree Passage Road between Rookes Road (North) and Rookes Road (South).
Mayor Leah Anderson said the funding responded to residents’ calls for safer roads, while acknowledging the council could not meet the scale of road repairs needed from its own resources.
“We’ve known our resources alone can’t match the scale of repairs needed. This grant will deliver lasting safety improvements to areas that have long concerned local drivers,” Cr Anderson said.
She said the council’s Road Futures Strategy sought to shift the focus from quick patches towards longer-lasting infrastructure. The upgrades would improve safety for people using the roads for school runs, commuting and travel between local towns and villages, she said.
The federal Black Spot Program funds safety measures at road locations where several serious crashes have occurred or where there is a risk of them occurring.
The council said further information about the three projects would be shared with the community in the coming months.
