Hepburn Shire Council has responded by including the proposed footpath upgrade for consideration in its walking and cycling strategy priority projects, which is currently in consultation phase.

A new footpath is expected to cost tens of thousands of dollars.

The petition, spearheaded by Creswick resident Tim Drylie, called on the council to install a “proper concrete footpath” and better lighting into Melbourne Road, to support what it described as a “growing diversity” of pedestrian traffic.

Mr Drylie has raised concerns of safety issues with no sealed footpath, only something of a “goat track”.

He mentioned older people who had fallen from their frames due to the path’s uneven state, and a child with a disability who struggled to get into taxis without a proper footpath.

“From the elderly with frames, parents with prams, kids walking to school, workers walking to the bus stop in the dark, to disabled students getting taxis, they all deserve a safe and properly lit modern footpath to get where they are going,” he said in the petition.

He said Creswick’s population was growing, particularly with council approving subdivisions and multi-dwelling developments, making it urgent to upgrade the path and its lighting.

Hepburn Shire Council is currently reviewing its walking and cycling strategy priority projects.

For the works requested in the petition to be “appropriately considered and included” in the strategy, the council has committed to considering the matter immediately rather than seeking a further report.

The strategy review and decision on the council’s priority projects is expected to be completed by September.

Creswick ward councillor Don Henderson has listed the road under the council’s repair and renewal program, and has been pushing to get one side completed as a priority.