Cr Glen Milne said major roads including the Calder, Sunraysia and Henty highways were in “really poor” condition and it was high time that governments commited to road improvements.

Cr Milne said that a passenger rail service returning to Mildura was unlikely and the only option for the average family was to travel by car.

“Second-rate would be an over-statement for our roads,” Cr Milne said yesterday.

“If you look from Bendigo back they are shocking, but particularly from Mildura to Wycheproof it’s pretty bad – there are a lot of ruts in the road, there’s dips and there’s bumps,” he said.

“But you travel to Adelaide from the South Australian border there are roadside stops everywhere with seats, chairs, shade, nice bitumen drives into those roadside stops, there are passing lanes, and there’s a stack of areas up to the Adelaide Hills where there’s three lanes.

“I think that we have got one passing lane on the Calder between Mildura and Ouyen and very little anywhere further on.”

Cr Milne said he was “really frustrated” by the amount of money that motorists paid in fuel and road taxes while little attention appeared to be paid towards rural roads.

“We’ve got the road toll going up and all they do is blame that on speed and tell people to slow down,” he said.

“If we’re going to build a nation, and we’re going to have to travel by road because they are not going to build rail, let’s have some good roads.

“Bendigo to Melbourne is good, but our rural roads haven’t really improved much since they were first bituminised.

“It wouldn’t take that much to make the Calder Highway wider without going to four lanes, put in some decent passing lanes and maintain it so that we don’t have to die on the roads.

“Putting in some decent passing lanes and getting serious about making the Calder a safe road to travel would be a real help.