Turnbull calls for Bollards in Melbourne CBD to prevent future attacks
In a sign of the times, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has called for the introductions of Bollards in the Melbourne CBD to prevent future attacks like the devastating Bourke Street rampage that killed five and injured dozens more.
Turnbull spoke with Melbourne radio station 3AW “This is a very, very concerning vulnerability. We need to be able to ensure – as much as we can – that it is not possible to get a vehicle into that place.”
The Turnbull government is currently pushing state and territory governments to get serious about the potential of car attacks like the Bourke Street attack or larger scale truck attacks as seen in Nice, France and Berlin, Germany.
Mr Turnbull has confirmed that he has had conversations with Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and Melbourne CBD Lord Mayor Robert Doyle.
“We have been working effectively with state and other governments to ensure that places of mass gathering are hardened and I believe more work has to be done in that area in Melbourne” Turnbull said.
It is unknown at this stage if the Andrews government will heed the advice of Turnbull and fund the mass installation of bollards in locations where large crowds gather. After the Bourke Street attack the only review that has so far been mentioned is the much needed reformation of current bail laws.
Many European nations have already begun the process of installing Bollards in heavily population pedestrian areas to prevent such attacks from occurring again.
Back in Australia one state government that is on the ball is the South Australian government, with temporary concrete barriers being installed outside the Adelaide Oval prior to the cricket season. The state government has announced plans to spend approximately $1 million dollars to replace the temporary barriers with permanent ones prior to the 2017 AFL season.
The federal government is also spending big to fortify its AFP buildings across the nation with over $40 million allocated to Operation Rampart, which will commence in February and be finalised by the end of the year. Upgrades across the sites will include fixed bollards, new two-layer security checkpoints, hostile-vehicle management systems as well as new resistance systems and tools to isolate hostile intruders and lock down AFP buildings and sites.