By ANEEKA SIMONIS
RYAN Downs never made it home to help his mother.
After days helping a mate in Warragul, Ryan got a call from his mum to come home.
And like the good son he was, he got in the car to make the journey home.
He never arrived.
His life was tragically cut short on the dangerous Healesville-Kooweerup Road on Friday 13 May.
Yet, his friends and family are committed to making sure Ryan, 27, from Wantirna South, lives on in a powerful and lasting gesture.
Much like the guy he was, Ryan’s legacy hopes to help – and importantly, safeguard – others.
A close relative, who did not want to be identified, and Ryan’s family and friends are poised to soon throw all their weight behind a campaign to fix the fatal road.
VicRoads said duplication works are in train for the road, but a funding commitment is holding up the process.
Ryan’s tragic death, in addition to a death of 22-year-old Neisha McLean, from Mount Evelyn, in February this year, has shone a light on the road, with community members rising up with calls for immediate change.
Kooweerup resident Gary King is pushing for a host of short-term changes, mostly focussed around a three kilometre bend on the road – a portion of which permits overtaking.
They are to:
* Install a ‘No overtaking for the next 3 kms’ sign either side of the bend.
* Install double lines prohibiting motorists from overtaking on the bend.
* Remove the scrub obstructing motorists’ vision on the left-hand side of the bend between the Ellett Road and Soldiers Road intersections.
* Reduce speed along the bend to 80km/h.
The soon-to-be launched campaign in Ryan’s honour will push the State Government to fund these immediate upgrades in addition to duplication works.
“If that road were duplicated, he may have hit a fence and not a truck,” the close relative told the Gazette.
“We are planning to mobilise and direct this anger and hurt so it does not happen again. Something needs to be done.
“We are among the world’s richest countries. We ought to be able to provide infrastructure that gives our most valuable resource the best chance to survive.”
At this stage, a formal survey or cost analysis has not yet been undertaken to improve the road.
Both VicRoads and the State Government said any upgrade would need to be assessed amongst other state-wide funding commitments.
But no amount of bureaucracy will stop Ryan’s friends and family in their fight for change.
“It’s time for us all to make a noise until something is done. That way we will continue what he wanted and if we can convince the powers that be, even in the sadness of his physical passing, he will leave an enduring legacy by helping to ensure that no others feel the burden of a loss such as we do today,” the relative said.
About a dozen of Ryan’s mates, most from Warragul, will form the online campaign in addition to family members.
Ryan was the eldest brother to three sisters and went to school at Warragul Regional College.
Many stories of Ryan’s modest generosity were told at his funeral – some completely new to his family – including when he sacrificed his wage to pay for a less fortunate family’s grocery bill.
His mother Helena Saint described him as kind and selfless.
“He was my baby boy.”
