The ACT Government has released a policy on roadside memorials. This policy will put in place restrictions on height and width of the homemade tributes to road accident victims that dot the region’s roadsides. The authorities also stress on safety issues of these memorials. Under the policy, permanent roadside memorials can be erected in a public area only if permission is obtained from nearby residents and the site is maintained.
A debate on these memorials came to forefront in May 2009 when the Government removed a makeshift shrine to two young people killed in a crash in Canberra's south. The residents of Clift Crescent in Richardson objected to the memorial to Megan Minney, 17, and Steven Rial, 20, who were both killed in a late-night crash on the street two months earlier following which the Territory and Municipal Services rangers removed the tribute.
According to Chief Minister and Minister for Transport Jon Stanhope, these rules were designed to give certainty to grieving relatives and friends while also respecting the views of nearby residents.
The memorial must be less than 1m high and free of any safety hazards. Territory and Municipal Services is suggesting the memorials comprise of small floral displays and plaques. Chief Minister Jon Stanhope said, “It is an issue that divides the community almost down the middle, there was no great level of support for a policy or for a policy that permitted roadside memorials…The new policy provides the community with consistent guidelines on the type of roadside memorials that can be erected while also ensuring that the views of nearby residents are taken into account.” He assured that in case of conflict Roads ACT will act as a mediator.
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