The Bucketts Way, which snakes from 12 Mile Creek near Medowie up to Gloucester and back out to Taree, has long been synonymous with serious and fatal crashes, often sparking outcry for more to be done to safeguard the road.

Labor has called for the winding 151 kilometre road to be transferred from the two councils in charge of it to the state. One of the two councils, MidCoast, is also midway through upgrades to fix identified black spots after sourcing state and federal funding for the works.

There were 40 serious crashes along the route in a recent five-year period and an additional 10 lives lost since 2014.

The latest fatality was a local woman - 38-year-old mother of two Kylie Tull from Gloucester. She was killed earlier this month while driving with her 11-year-old daughter Rubi about five kilometres north of the Stroud Road intersection.

Friend of the Tull family Troy Cudbertson said they were driving through an area where there had been a landslip after recent rain and a tree came down as she was driving.

Mr Cudbertson said Kylie was impacted and Rubi grabbed the wheel. When the car came to a stop, he said Rubi had to climb out of the car over her mother to call for help.

"It was pretty bad," he said.

Rubi was taken to John Hunter Hospital with minor injuries, while Kylie was declared deceased at the scene.

Debris and branches were found at the scene and police confirmed they did not believe the accident was driver-caused. Investigations are continuing into the incident.

Mr Cudbertson said Kylie would be remembered as a "very strong person" who always helped her community and had a passion for helping people living with dementia. He has set up a GoFundMe to support the family through the loss of their wife and mother.

"She was an excellent mother," Mr Cudbertson said. "She loved the girls. She was the one in her family everyone could turn to."

Mr Cudbertson said while Kylie's death was believed to have been caused by a freak tree fall, The Bucketts Way was "renowned" for serious accidents.

"It's pretty notorious for crashes," he said. "It's definitely got a reputation. But it's hard to avoid because it's the only way in or out."

Gloucester truck driver Michael Ireland has driven the stretch pretty much every day for about 10 years.

He said the road's reputation was well known among customers he speaks to in Newcastle and even out west.

"It's shocking, always has been," he said. "It's uneven, there's potholes. It's pretty well known how bad it is.

"They go through these little blitzes of repairing little sections, but then they don't maintain it."

Mr Ireland said being in a truck, he tried to stick to the middle of the road to avoid the road edge ripping up his tyres. But it's difficult to navigate with the bends and poor road quality.

"You have to constantly be on the look out for what's coming," he said.

The road is also not approved for use by long B-doubles.

"If the road was better, you would be able to get more freight on it," he said.

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MidCoast Council received $8 million in 2017 for the first stage of major upgrades to The Bucketts Way through the NSW Fixing Country Roads program.

Council said this was half the amount requested, and further money was sourced under the federal Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity program in late 2018/early 2019.

So far upgrades have been completed at five points - near Limeburners Creek Road, Limeburners Creek; near Stroud Hill Road, Stroud; near Reidsdale Road, Stroud Road; Craven and near Wenham Cox Road, Stratford, with further works to be completed in the next few months.

A second stage funded under the Roads of Strategic Importance program will involve another $25 million invested on "key projects" along the route, council said.

The scope of works includes upgrades to the road and bridges to improve road geometry, including widened travelling lanes and shoulders; improved road alignment; overtaking lanes at key locations; safety barrier upgrades and regulatory and warning signage upgrades.

Port Stephens Council, which manages a small part of The Bucketts Way, is also assessing the route for Safer Roads funding to improve safety.

MidCoast mayor David West said the road was created with "a very old design" and required a high amount of concentration from drivers.

He said there had been speed limit reductions on the road over the years, and making it safer would require the limit to be reduced "significantly".

Cr West also said replacing the road would also require a lot of money and would ultimately detract from its scenic value.

Labor's rural roads spokesperson Mick Veitch visited Gloucester recently to highlight the "urgent need" for The Bucketts Way and other key transport roads to be transferred from councils to the state.

The government is planning to transfer 15,000 kilometres of roads to the state to ease the financial burden on councils.

Mr Veitch pointed out former Upper Hunter MP Michael Johnsen had pushed for The Bucketts Way to be one of the roads the government takes back.

"The Bucketts Way and Thunderbolts Way are a very busy freight routes and are exposed to a lot of wear and tear from trucks," Mr Veitch said.

"They're also popular tourist routes and are regularly used by visitors who are unfamiliar with the road. They're notoriously dangerous roads and Bucketts Way was voted the third worst road in the wider Hunter region in 2015.

"Bucketts Way and Thunderbolts Way require costly maintenance and must be a priority in the reclassification process."

Regional Transport and Roads Minister Paul Toole said the roads transfer was a "complex process" requiring "thorough consultation" with local government, freight industry and communities.

He said an independent panel of experts had been established to oversee the process, which had delivered an interim report and priority recommendations to government based on submissions received.

"It is currently being reviewed," he said. "Announcements about the outcomes of this priority round will be made in coming months."

Mr Toole said all councils will be invited to submit for reclassification and regional councils will be invited to provide their submissions for transfers in the Regional Road Transfer and Road Classification Review, due to open later this year.

When asked about his stance on The Bucketts Way being transferred to the state, Nationals Upper Hunter candidate David Layzell said bringing roads up to scratch would a "priority" if he is elected on Saturday, but did not mention The Bucketts Way specifically.

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