QUEANBEYAN City councillors have voted to whittle down a 15-question phone survey on the Ellerton Drive Extension to just six questions.
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The decision comes after extensive discussion between councillors at the Planning and Review Committee on Wednesday, May 13.
The phone poll is funded by the Road and Maritime Services and will be conducted by an independent company.
Many councillors felt that a number of the original 15 questions, submitted by the independent company conducting the survey, were generic or irrelevant.
Questions such as whether the individual rented or owned their house, how many people lived in the household, whether the individual spoke languages other than English at home, if they were a ratepayer and how long they had lived in Queanbeyan.
Councillor Kenrick Winchester presented councillors with an amended version of the original 15 questions with changes to terminology like "proposed EDE" rather than just "EDE" and removed any references to a "bypass".
He also included questions asking whether residents had read the traffic study and whether they would prefer the EDE or Dunns Creek Road.
Cr Cregan also proposed his own alternative questions but simplified it to just five. Councillors later voted to pass through Cr Cregan shorter survey and include a sixth question taken from Cr Winchester's proposal.
"This is about finding out whether people support the EDE or not," Cr Cregan said.
"It should be an open and fair survey based on the EDE. When I first saw the questions, I didn't like the questions.
"These questions [I'm proposing] are a very simple way of conducting a survey, it's not leading in any way."
There have been previous concerns that the phone polling would be contained to the '2620' postcode however Cr Winchester was successful in passing his motion to get Council to survey residents outside Queanbeyan.
He suggested council survey current residents of Googong, Fernleigh Park, Mt Campbell, Burra, Little Burra and Royalla regarding which road would be their preference - Ellerton Drive Extension or Dunns Creek Road.
The surveys will be carried out in the next few months and the results provided to council at a later date.
The final six questions are:
- Are you aware of the proposed EDE running from Cooma Road/Edwin Land Parkway intersection to Kings Highway/Yass Road intersection to complete a southern ring road?
- Are you supportive of the proposed Ellerton drive extension proceeding?
- What negatives and/or benefits will the proposed Ellerton Drive Extension deliver for Queanbeyan, including Jerrabomberra or Googong?
- Do you know where to find information about the proposed Ellerton Drive Extension?
- Do you have anything further you would like to add?
- Have you read the traffic study undertaken by council to address Queanbeyan's traffic issues? It is called the Googong and Tralee Traffic Study 2031.