Kangaroo Island may charge visitor fee

Kangaroo Island will be forced to close its roads in less than four years or charge tourists a fee to assist with their upkeep, the local Mayor has said.  

Mayor Jayne Bates told The Advertiser r0ad closures would be the last resort. Alternatively, adult tourists could be charged $10 each to visit the island.

The council has already been forced to raise its 4,200 residents’ rates by two per cent above the Consumer Price Index (CPI) each year for the next 10 years to assist with the upkeep of the island’s 1300km of unsealed and 250km of sealed roads.

Bates added the council was a long way from closing roads but in the first instance would make them local-use only.

A study commissioned by the council found the proposed visitor levy would hit tourism by two per cent.

“We want the Kangaroo Island economy and tourism to grow and prosper, and you can’t do that without sound infrastructure,” she said. “Our biggest complaint by visitors is roads, by a country mile.”

An estimated 185,000 visit the island each year.

By Alice Terlikowski  ·  February 2nd, 2010 at 1:18 pm

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