TASAC Minutes 16 January 2013 Minutes of the Tourist Attraction Signposting Assessment Committee and the Western Region Subcommittee Wednesday 16 January 2013 in the Committee Room of Cabonne Council, 99-101 Bank Street, Molong Members David Douglas Regional Coordinator TASAC and Drive, Destination NSW Tony Hendry Road Safety and Traffic Manager, RMS Western Region Maria Zannetides TASAC Secretariat Western Region Subcommittee Lucy White Central NSW Tourism Marty Cassell RMS Western Region Also present Glenn Mickle Promotions and Tourism Officer, Cabonne Council Tony Weekes Maintenance Coordinator, Cabonne Council Tony Boland Business Projects Officer, Orange City Council Felicity Baines Tourism Manager, Bathurst Regional Council Holly Manning CEO, Mudgee Regional Tourism Sharon Toynton Tourism Promotions & Media Liaison Officer, Wellington Council Kyle Branscombe RMS Western Region Andrew Stein President, Mudgee Wine Grape Growers Association Graham Smith Owner, Totally Local, Orange Kai Woltmann Second Mouse Cheese Factory, Orange Tim Cornell Economic and Community Development Officer, Blayney Shire Council Andrew Kearins Roads Engineer, Mid Western Regional Council Apologies Sharon Grierson RMS Western Region Kellie Barrow Tourism Manager, Lithgow City Council Joanne Barton Oberon Council AGENDA ITEMS 1. DELEGATIONS / PRESENTATIONS & REGIONAL SIGNPOSTING ISSUES 1.1 Cabonne signage issues Glenn raised the following tourist signage matters: i Animals on Bikes sculpture trail Background This community project has seen the installation of over 110 “Animals on Bikes” sculptures on farmland adjacent to a road between Dubbo and Molong. The sculpture trail, which is shared by Final 4 February 2013 1 of 16 TASAC Minutes 16 January 2013 the local government areas of Dubbo and Cabonne, extends over some 120 km and passes through the towns on of Yeoval and Cumnock. Access to the trail is off the Newell Highway in the north and off the Mitchell Highway in the south. The road from Dubbo to Yeoval is a local road known as Obley Road and from Yeoval to Molong it is a regional road known as Banjo Patterson Way. The first group of about 40 sculptures was installed in 2009 and another 70 or so sculptures were added in 2011. The initial motivation for the project was to create a visual fantasy for children. Other objectives are to foster creative pursuits in the district and encourage visitation to Yeoval and Cumnock. The project and the potential to install tourist signposting at the start and end of the trail were the subject of a presentation to TASAC in January 2010. TASAC responded that prerequisites for tourist signposting would include establishing that motorists could safely stop at each sculpture; written support from both councils; and that appropriate interpretive information was available along the trail. In May 2012 Christine Weston, Animals on Bikes Organiser, contacted RMS Western Region regarding tourist signposting and subsequently spoke to Maria. The inquiry was discussed at the June 2012 TASAC meeting where the road safety issues were again discussed and a copy of the meeting minutes was sent to Ms Weston. Discussion Tony Hendry described the road as very narrow and winding. There are no opportunities for motorists to safely stop along the road apart from in residents’ driveways, which is undesirable and potentially hazardous. The sculptures are all set back from the road and some are quite distant from it. The view of some sculptures is blocked by trees and some are obscured by long grass. In combination these factors present a distraction to motorists. The speed limit along most of the route is 100 kph and it is used by large trucks. Signposting the route as a major tourist attraction would further increase the volume of traffic on the road and would also encourage more people to attempt to stop to view the sculptures. The consequent safety risks are considerable and would be unacceptable. The safety risks could not be overcome without incurring major costs, such as those associated with road widening and / or establishing off-road viewing areas at several appropriate locations along the route. Glenn indicated that Cabonne Council accepts that installing tourist signs for the trail would increase its risk and similar comments were made to Maria by David Newberry of Dubbo Council in June 2012. David, Marty and Kyle inspected the sculpture trail between Molong and Cumnock the day prior to the meeting and also discussed the project with staff at the Orange Visitor Information Centre (VIC). David made the following observations: The inspection confirms Tony’s comments about the narrowness and winding nature of the road and the lack of locations along it to safely stop to view the sculptures. David spoke to motorists who had stopped at the side of the road near Cumnock to take photos of one of the sculptures. The motorists commented that while travelling at relatively slow speeds to view the sculptures they experienced some anxious moments because some vehicles attempted to overtake them when it was not safe to do so. A staff member at the VIC was of the view that that the trail is more popular with “grey nomad” tourists than with families. The following points were also noted: Final 4 February 2013 2 of 16 TASAC Minutes 16 January 2013 a) If the start and end of the trail received tourist signposting, “Welcome” signs would be installed at each end. The signs would also direct visitors to a nearby information bay where they could park safely, alight from their vehicle and view details about the trail on information panels. As a minimum, the panels would include a map of the trail, information about the number and location of sculptures, history of the project and locations where more information about the project could be obtained. The applicants for tourist signposting would need to meet the costs of the “Welcome” signs as well as the costs associated with establishing off-road information bays at appropriate locations near each end. b) RMS has plans to improve white on green directional signage for Banjo Patterson Way from the Mitchell Highway in the next few months and this will assist visitors to access the sculpture trail. c) The proponents could consider relocating some existing sculptures and / or commissioning new ones to be installed at key locations (such as at off-road locations associated with VICs) where visitors could view them safely. d) While traffic along the road has increased since the trail was established it is not clear whether visitation to Cumnock and Yeoval has also increased. e) Lucy commented that there are other more appropriate ways to promote the project such as through digital media including the preparation of a downloadable application or “app” that visitors could access on mobile phones or other portable digital devices to learn about the trail and its features. Decision: The safety concerns noted above render the Animals on Bikes sculpture trail unsuitable for tourist signposting. Action: Glenn and Lucy and a representative of Dubbo Council are to get in touch with the project’s proponents to explore mechanisms to promote “Animals on Bikes” other than via tourist signposting. ii Escort Rock Historic Site, Eugowra At its previous meeting TASAC found Cabonne Council’s application for tourist signposting of Escort Rock to be potentially eligible in the Historic Properties and Sites category, subject to the resolution of a number of issues. Escort Rock, which is on private land, is the site of an historic gold robbery. The application sought signposting for an interpretive site within an off-road rest area on publically accessible land about 200 m from Escort Rock itself. The following updates on the outstanding issues were discussed: a) The publication of appropriate promotional material: Glenn confirmed that a promotional brochure was being developed because existing promotional material is out of date. David commented that while the promotional material need not be elaborate and could be in downloadable and / or hard copy form, it was preferable that it was a stand-alone document, rather than including a section on Escort Rock in an omnibus publication. Tony Hendry added that it would be important for the promotional material to clearly indicate whether visitors are welcome to enter the adjacent property to access Escort Rock itself - see c) below for more details. b) Appropriate name for signposting purposes: It was agreed that the appropriate name for signposting purposes would be Escort Rock Historic Site. Final 4 February 2013 3 of 16 TASAC Minutes 16 January 2013 c) Preparation of a site inspection report: David inspected the site the day prior to the meeting and made the following observations: The interpretive material within the rest area is engaging and well presented. Better delineation of Escort Rock is needed so that visitors to the rest area can more easily identify it from that location. A fence with an unlocked gate separates the publically accessible land from Escort Rock on the adjacent private property, which is a working farm. A sign at the gate states “Private Property” so it is not clear whether visitors are welcome to enter the property to access Escort Rock and view it more closely. This confusion is exacerbated by the presence of some additional small interpretive signs at the rock itself, which are understood to have been installed by the landowner. The rest area is somewhat run down and its presentation requires improvement, e.g. some existing benches are in poor condition and a relatively new sign giving the site’s name (“Escort Rock Historic Site”) has been attached over an old and faded sign. Unfortunately the new sign is smaller than the old one so parts of the original faded sign are still visible. Glenn responded that the owner of the adjacent farm does not wish to prevent visitors from accessing his land as he recognises the historic significance of Escort Rock.