Speed mitigation measures are a key factor that has been lingering in residents’ minds in Old Coach Road, following the harrowing incident that left two teenage girls’ car windows smashed by men wielding hammers.
Police confirmed that they received a call around 10pm on 21 June, reporting that a car had been damaged by two men with hammers on the hilly road in Berwick.
Two young women were sitting in their car when two men, hammers in hand, began to smash the windows of the vehicle.
While no one was harmed during the incident, residents of the street were left uneasy, with Jonathan saying that they “didn’t dare to step onto the road when it’s late”.
Despite not living towards the top of the hill, they were still able to hear the incident unfold; despite its occurrence, however, they said non-violent, but still unruly behaviour was all too commonplace.
“Look, this neighbourhood is great, it’s very good, it’s quiet and peaceful during the day, but the view is the problem, and anyone can go up there,” they said.
“It was a long time ago when up there was vacant land, but still people go up there and they linger.
“At that point, there’s rubbish everywhere, and who really knows what happens up there,” they said.
Speed humps, additional cameras and even a boom gate were the propositions that Jonathan had in mind to be placed on the road, saying that the amount of people that come through and their unruly behaviour has been a significant security concern.
“Look, there aren’t any speed cameras on the road,
The height of the hill that Old Coach Road, roughly 600 odd metres before it transitions to Baker Road, is a well-known hot spot for a panoramic view of Berwick and its surrounding areas.
Dubbed the Berwick Lookout, it serves as a popular spot for many to gather, mostly in vehicles during sunset and at night, to take in the lights and view of Berwick Village and the stretch of Clyde Road.
The peak of the hill also gives a good view of the hillside towards the Fountain Gate Shopping Centre.
To Jonathan, however, “it’s not fair for us to live here, and have to put up with that during the night”.
Allegedly, there are one too many times where “people go up there with their cars and race down the hill”.
“The people that come to the hill aren’t necessarily just from around here, they come from all over the place, and they choose it because of the nice view,” they said.
Another resident who lives on neighbouring Casey Drive, but takes frequent walks that go down Old Coach Road, said that they felt the same way.
Safety remained a priority, with the resident adding that “we don’t do those walks any more, especially at night”.
“We used to go around from the back of our house, which would go to the top of the hill, then back down, but we avoid doing that now because of the cars there, so if we see cars, we don’t go.
“It’s a popular spot, the views are good too, but then again, you can’t really tell if things like that happen again,” they said.
The most recent data in the year ending March 2025 from the Crime Statistics Agency listed Berwick as third in Casey for criminal incidents and offences recorded.
The suburb recorded a total of 3015 incidents of the latter, a 10 per cent increase from 2024’s figure of 2718.
This is a gradual increase throughout the years, and the highest figure since 2016.
However, like the other suburbs in Casey, when it comes to the top five, property and deception offences remain the highest, with 1784 recorded offences in Berwick for the year ending March 2025.
In relation to the incident on Old Coach Road, crimes against a person tallied at 584 recorded offences, a small increase from the previous year’s 546 figure; this is also a gradual increase from 2019.
Deeper in this category, assault and related offences saw the highest number, with 323, but is lower than 2024’s number of 336.
This story is developing, and the police investigation remains ongoing.
