RAISE THE ROAD: Campaign launch | POLL

The Advertiser has partnered with the Maitland Mercury to launch a campaign that calls on the state government to raise the road and ­provide a permanent solution to the ongoing flooding problems at Testers Hollow.

It is a key route to the Hunter Expressway.

Some residents say the road has been flood-prone for more than 50 years.

The floodwater subsided enough for the road to be reopened to traffic on Monday, but that was little comfort to regular users of the route who know it’s only a matter of time before the road is cut again if ­nothing is done.

The fact that this is the second time that floodwater has taken the road out of action in nine months has only made their frustration more acute.

But if last year’s April super storm wasn’t enough to get the road fixed, the question is: What will it take for the problem to be addressed?

The Advertiser believes now is the time for action.

In the coming weeks, this ­newspaper will investigate the ­history of flooding at Testers Hollow, the possible solutions that have been touted in the past and try to find out why nothing has been done to date.

We will ask questions of key stakeholders at local and state levels and show the government that this is a problem that the Cessnock and Maitland communities desperately need to be solved, before the road goes under again.

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