A grieving mother is on a mission to have the Pykes Creek “death trap” on the Western Freeway widened.
Nik Barbara, 21, was travelling outbound on the Western Freeway, near Pykes Creek, when his car burst into flames after colliding with a truck on the sweeping bend.
He died at the scene.
Nik’s mother Sharon Walker started an online petition last week calling on the state government to urgently upgrade that section of the Western Freeway before there is another fatality or serious injury.
While detectives are still investigating the cause of the crash, Ms Walker believes the design of the road had an impact.
“The grief is cruel because this stretch of road is a death trap with nowhere to go when trucks struggle on a stretch of two lanes,” the petition states.
“This road needs to be widened and warnings are urgently required.
“A town is mourning, and we are all familiar with this stretch, yet not all drivers are familiar when they become boxed in.”
In the past five years, there have been 15 collisions on the Western Freeway between Pykes Creek and Old Melbourne Road. Roads Minister Luke Donnellan said VicRoads is investigating improvements to the Western Freeway, including the section where Nik died.
“Every death on our roads is a tragedy, and our hearts go out to the family and friends of young Nikolas Barbara and to the local community, all of whom are deeply mourning his loss,” Mr Donnellan said.
Ms Walker says she’s decided to take action to get the road upgraded in honour of her son.
“I need to live with my conscience, knowing I’ve tried to make a difference,” she says.
Sign the petition at goo.gl/tObCsH
