Released 01/09/2021
The ACT Government is revving up the annual mowing program to mark the start of spring as city maintenance crews work to maintain safety and keep Canberra looking its best.
“Even a pandemic won’t stop the big spring growth we are expecting this year after a very wet winter, so getting mowing underway is an essential service priority,” said ACT Minister for Transport and City Services Chris Steel.
“The focus for our crews will be mowing at roadside intersections to keep grass maintained to a safe level and prevent any line-of-sight issues for drivers. We will also be mowing the irrigated parks around town at staggered times and ACT Government sportsgrounds, which are seeing extra traffic at the moment with more Canberrans doing individual exercise outside.
“We ask for the community’s understanding and patience as our crews work to mow priority areas across the city while also complying with current health directions.”
Once the lockdown period ends, the ACT Government will take a staged approach to ramping up normal mowing operations as more teams return to work.
The ACT’s annual mowing program normally runs from September to March. Suburbs and areas of open space are mown every four weeks with arterial road areas mown every five weeks.
There are 73 mowers in the fleet with each mower covering an area of 68 hectares every four weeks.
“After a wet winter when more than 215 millimetres of rain was recorded at the Canberra Airport and above average rainfall forecast during spring, we’re expecting to see grass grow quickly when the warmer weather returns,” Minister Steel said.
“We understand that keeping it down to safe and accessible levels is a priority for the Canberra community, so our teams will be working as efficiently and safely as they can to achieve this once the full program ramps up,” Minister Steel concluded.
All mowers have had a pre-season mechanical service and safety compliance check completed. This has included testing of the GPS systems that are used to capture data on which areas have been mown.
When the mowing program is in full operation after lockdown, this information will be used to populate a LIVE mowing map that will show where crews have been and where they are intending to mow in the coming weeks.
The mowing map and more information on the ACT Government mowing program can be found on the City Services website at www.cityservices.act.gov.au.
- Statement ends -
Chris Steel, MLA | Media Releases