Service Spotlight: A clean sweep of the Surf Coast

It’s 5am on a dark Torquay autumn morning.

Street lights glow yellow, café operators are yet to switch on their coffee machines and, aside from the occasional very committed early-morning runner, Loni Kern has Bell Street to himself.

This is how a typical working day begins for Loni, Council’s street sweeper operator for the past two years.

Before the cars arrive, he’s already at work – sweeping industrial and commercial areas before first light, and moving into residential as cars parked overnight head off for the day.

“At the start the early mornings were a bit rough, but you get used to it after a while,” Loni says.

“It’s become normal now, and it means I’m finished earlier in the day so I can be with my kids, which is a positive.”

Today, Loni is sweeping up and down Bell Street before heading north along The Esplanade and up Gilbert Street, looping around the town centre.

It’s a routine he follows each week, helping keep one of the shire’s busiest areas clean and welcoming for residents and visitors.

“I think my job benefits the community, because I’m keeping the streets cleaner and keeping rubbish off the roads,” Loni says.

“It stops the drains from blocking up, and visually it just makes our towns look better.”

Loni also carries out early morning commercial area sweeps in Lorne and Anglesea, and covers residential areas across the shire.

Council’s street sweeping program includes all kerbed streets, plus rural sealed intersections.

There are known ‘hot spots’ that always need attention after storms or public holidays, and emergency call-outs for spills can crop up at any time.

All of this is carried out by a single, hard-working piece of street sweeping equipment, and of course its dedicated driver.

“The job gives me a lot of freedom, I just grab the keys, jump in the truck and I’m off,” Loni says.

“I get to see the whole of the Surf Coast.

“Watching the sunrise driving down the Great Ocean Road to Lorne – I really enjoy that side of it.”

So as the birds start to sing their morning tunes tomorrow morning, Loni will once again be hard at work – quietly helping the Surf Coast look its best, one street at a time.