The Victorian state government has announced more than $25 million in road and traffic upgrades to keep Melbourne moving while the Metro Tunnel is built.
Preparation work for the project will take place at more than 250 sites across the Melbourne CBD ahead of the project start in early 2017.
“There will be a huge impact on our city while we build the Metro Tunnel but the biggest impact will be once it’s finished, delivering more trains in and out of the city for passengers in suburbs and regions across Victoria,” Victorian minister for public transport Jacinta Allan says.
Franklin Street will close between Swanston and Victoria Streets, and A’Beckett Street will close between Swanston and Stewart Streets. They will remain closed for five years to allow for construction of the new CBD North station next to Melbourne Central.
To improve traffic flow and provide an alternative to these roads, parking near intersections on La Trobe Street between Exhibition and King Streets will be removed. A ‘no stopping’ zone will also be introduced eastbound on Victoria Street between Leicester and Nicholson Streets during the morning peak.
Domain Road will be closed from St Kilda Road to the edge of Edmund Herring Oval from late April 2017 to allow for construction of the new Domain station, and trams will begin running along the new Toorak Road West connection.
Towards the end of 2017, St Kilda Road will be reconfigured to one lane in each direction between Domain and Toorak Roads for three years, also to accommodate the construction of Domain station. The state government says tram, pedestrian and bicycle access will be maintained in the area.
In addition to the road alterations, more than 100 traffic lights at key intersections across the inner city will be reprogrammed to improve traffic flow and CCTV cameras will be installed on alternative routes such as Kings Way and Queens Road to monitor traffic in real-time and respond to incidents on these corridors quicker.