UNCERTAINTY over ownership of some sections of Jefferys Track has prompted the closure of the popular four-wheel-drive route connecting the Derwent and Huon Valleys. “No entry” signs have been installed at the southern (Huon Valley) end of the track and a similar situation is said to be developing at the northern (Derwent Valley) end.
Jefferys Track is a dirt road that covers a distance of about 13km between Hydehurst Rd, Lachlan, and the intersection of Mitchells Rd and Crabtree Rd above Crabtree. The route is believed to be about 180 years old and has long been regarded as a “missing link” between the two valleys.
“Jeffreys Track, that previously enabled 4WD permit holders to exit Wellington Park, is no longer open to the public,” the Wellington Park Management Trust announced in a statement on January 16, explaining that parts of the track had been deemed to be a private road where it crosses multiple private properties outside of Wellington Park.
“In these areas, Jefferys Track is not maintained by a public authority, nor does a public authority assume liability for use of the track. Instead, this falls to the private landholders. The Wellington Park Management Trust has been unable to secure approval for an alternative route that enables drivers to safely exit Wellington Park across other land tenures. This work is continuing, but is beyond the control of the Trust.”
In an update on February 2, the trust advised that “no entry” signage had now been installed at the southern end of Jefferys Track, where it enters private land and is not publicly maintained. “Despite efforts over several years, the private landholder has not been able to secure public authority recognition that Jefferys Track is a ‘public road’ where it crosses private land.
“In the absence of that recognition, significant liability risk and maintenance costs pass to the private landholder. The Trust is aware of a similar situation emerging on Jefferys Track north of Wellington Park. Although advocacy efforts continue, there is currently no public access to Wellington Park via Jefferys Track.”
Jefferys Track has been the subject of multiple studies investigating its upgrading to a logging route or tourist road. These have always found such proposals to be unviable and the route has remained as a 4WD track. A 2020 study by Deloitte Access Economics noted: “Different sections of Jefferys Track are owned and managed by different parties [and] the fact that no single party has overall responsibility for funding, monitoring and maintenance of the track appears to be one reason for its current poor condition.”
Writing in the January 30 edition of the News, Lyons Greens MHA Tabatha Badger notes that the track forms part of the Tasmanian Trail used by walkers, horseriders and mountainbikers, and calls on the state government to act to keep the route open.
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