Fears that an ageing fence could pierce windscreens and potentially kill motorists in a crash on a busy Hobart road are likely to result in its removal.
A report by the Hobart City Council recommends scrapping the pedestrian barriers at the Railway Roundabout at a cost to ratepayers of about $35,000.
The move follows a frightening crash where “an element of the fence speared through the passenger side front window screen of the vehicle”.
“There were no passengers in the car at that time, but if there was, significant injuries may have occurred,” the report states.
Police said the fence railing “lodged through the entirety of the vehicle”.
The decades-old fencing, originally installed to direct pedestrians towards the underpass linking the CBD and the former railway station, has been damaged in 16 separate crashes over the past decade.
Maintenance has become “increasingly difficult and costly” due to the structure’s deteriorating condition.
Rather than replacing the barriers, an option that would cost nearly $500,000, council engineers recommend their complete removal, describing the fencing as “unwarranted”.
Under the proposed plan, the steel would be recycled, while barriers would be retained only around underpass stairwells and within the central island to prevent falls.
The Hobart Workshop Committee will consider the recommendation at its meeting on Monday.
