An Ulladulla businessman has joined the chorus of voices from different sectors of the public calling for a major upgrade of the Princes Highway.
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Born and bred Ulladulla man William Drury has backed Fairfax Media’s FIX IT NOW campaign highlighting the need for the arterial road of the South Coast to be upgraded.
Mr Drury, who owns Ulladulla Printing Services situated on the Princes Highway, said a dual-lane upgrade of the highway would improve delivery consistency for businesses relying on freight.
His business receives “three or four” pallets of paper a week, signage materials and different printing stocks with most items leaving Sydney. Following manufacture, products are then sent out to areas outside of Ulladulla such as Nowra, Wollongong and Sydney.
He says an improvement to the highway would allow larger trucks to navigate the South Coast route and improve turnaround times.
“The issue we have with freight is our paper is heavy, so if the freight companies are busy they’ll leave our paper off because it lightens their trucks up significantly,” he said.
“It's a major job for freight companies, getting freight in and around Australia. Again, an issue for us is getting consistency in freight and turnaround times.”
However, Mr Drury also shares sentiments many parents of budding drivers could empathise with. His daughter, who is on her provisional licence, referees rugby league games and travels to numerous South Coast townships on weekends.
“She’s on that road constantly, she’s young, she’s inexperienced. Really, we need the best roads we can [get],” he said.
Population is also increasing with recent property developments springing up at Dolphin Point and Narrawallee. Mr Drury called on political parties to embrace a “good idea” and support a growing community.
“You only have to travel from Kiama to Berry to see what it does,” he said.
“It just needs to be done, both business wise and community wise.”