By XAVIER SMERDON
THE Witch of Werribee knows how bad traffic congestion in Wyndham is.
So early next month the woman riding a broom and wearing a big black hat, also known as councillor Heather Marcus, is hoping to spread this message of woe to people from the other side of town.
Cr Marcus will be the highlight of the Race to the City, an event organised by Wyndham Council to bring attention to the struggles residents face every day when travelling to and from work.
At 7.30am on Wednesday 2 April, 15 people from three different suburbs across Wyndham will drive, ride a bike or take public transport and battle it out to see who will beat the traffic and arrive at Federation Square in the city first.
Wyndham Mayor Bob Fairclough said while the race will be fun for those participating, the aim is to highlight the daily struggle faced by thousands of our residents.
“While those participating in the race to get to Melbourne first have only their pride on the line, every peak hour thousands of our residents face the stress of racing to work by train, bike or car and spending valuable time away from their family,” Cr Fairclough said.
“VicHealth data from 2011 shows 26.2 per cent of Wyndham residents spent more than two hours a day commuting, more than double the Melbourne average of 11.6 per cent.”
Cr Heather Marcus will complete the last bit of the journey on her broom in a move that she said it was hoped would help to grab people’s attention.
“When you do a public campaign like this you need it to be interesting and exciting,” Cr Marcus said.
“There is so much going on every day that you need to do something different to touch the right button and get people’s attention.”
Cr Marcus said she was happy to be known as the Witch of Werribee for a good cause.
“I want to make a point and I want people to sit up and notice Wyndham,” she said.
“We have gotten to the point where the traffic and congestion in Wyndham is totally unacceptable.”
For more information on the Race to the City visit www.getwyndhammoving.com.au
