Coffs Harbour businesses will be keeping a close eye on trade in the days and weeks after motorists are given the opportunity to skip the city altogether.
Tourism and accommodation operators are concerned the state’s unwillingness to provide additional highway signage will impact visitor numbers when the city’s bypass opens.
“We need signage that highlights our significant assets and attractions, showing we're open and ready for business,” Quality Hotel City Centre proprietor Michael Dougherty told the local council’s public forum last week.
“The highway might bypass Coffs Harbour, but the town must never be bypassed in the minds of motorists.”
What’s going on: The 14km, $2.2 billion bypass is slated to open in December, meaning drivers will no longer travel through Coffs Harbour when headed north or south on the highway.
The existing highway has signs directing people to locations including the airport, resorts, shopping centres, the hospital, sports facilities, the industrial area, the National Marine Science Centre, Sealy Lookout, Coffs Coast Wildlife Sanctuary, Big Banana and The Clog Barn. These signs will remain in place, but will no longer be on a stretch of the highway.
Who gets what?: The new section of highway is set to have just a handful of signs, supplied by state road agency Transport for NSW (TfNSW).
Two will inform drivers they are bypassing Coffs Harbour, two will contain icons indicating some services and facilities and one will highlight Tourist Drive 18.
The Big Banana will also be signposted.
The council’s requests for further signage - directing motorists to additional tourist routes and the city’s stadium and education precincts - have been knocked back.
Room for leniency: Brad Daymond, GM of Coastal & Golf Resorts Group - which operates Bonville Golf Resort and Pacific Bay Resort - said the signage being offered falls short.
“Based on Transport's current position, no one who stays on the bypass will be aware of [Coffs Harbour] businesses and facilities, or their ease to access them,” Daymond told the council last week.
Look down the road: Eligibility rules for signage are set by different state agencies depending on what the sign would be pointing to.
For example, signs directing drivers to tourist sites are approved by state tourism agency Destination NSW in consultation with TfNSW.
The criteria for signage - which may include visitor numbers and opening hours - varies depending on which agency is overseeing the request.
Daymond said businesses in Port Macquarie had received more favourable signage treatment.
[They have] Transport signage on the motorway, including Ricardoes Tomatoes and Strawberries, Cassegrain Winery, Abundance Nursery, Billabong Zoo, Sancrox Industrial Area. So it proves it can be done.”
The response: A spokesperson for TfNSW said the agency will provide bypass signage for “eligible major tourist attractions and tourist drive 18”.
“While Transport for NSW acknowledges the importance of tourism to the Coffs Harbour region and appreciates Council's efforts to promote local attractions, tourist signage is intended to reinforce an existing and established tourism product rather than create awareness of one,” they said.
TfNSW is in discussion with Coffs Coast Wildlife Sanctuary over potential signage.
What now: The council voted last week to continue advocating for the state to provide additional signage.
Image credit: Coffs Collections/Debbie Campbell.