The Victorian Government has released designs for the upgraded Doncaster Park and Ride in Melbourne’s North East.
Doncaster Park and Ride will soon connect to a dedicated busway along the Eastern Freeway, slashing bus travel times along the freeway by up to 30 per cent.
The upgraded bus interchange will also feature a dedicated entry and exit ramp, with three longer bus platform bays to cut congestion and allow buses to enter and exit more efficiently.
A new 435-space multi-level car park will be built, along with upgraded drop-off and pick-up bays, lifts, stairs, ten motorcycle spaces and 13 accessible car spaces – making it easier for people to catch the bus.
New pedestrian and cycling paths will link into the new underpass under Doncaster Road, while 28 bike hoops and a Parkiteer cage for 26 bicycles will be installed.
The Park and Ride will also feature more than 1,000 square metres of green wall space for climbing plants, more than 20,000 plants and 150 new indigenous and native trees.
Victorian Minister for Public and Active Transport, Gabrielle Williams said, “Revitalising Doncaster Park and Ride into a state-of-the-art transport centre will support faster, reliable buses to and from the city and will unlock potential for new routes and services as our city grows.”
The Doncaster Park and Ride upgrade joins the new park and ride at Bulleen to double the number of parks available to commuters using the Eastern Freeway bus services.
These will directly connect to the future Eastern Busway from Doncaster towards the city – offering dedicated high-speed bus lanes for the six million buses that travel along the Eastern Freeway every year.
Victorian Minister for Transport Infrastructure Danny Pearson, said, “This vital upgrade to the Doncaster Park and Ride will make it easier to get to and from the city for the thousands of passengers who use this bus interchange every day.”
The Eastern Busway is being delivered as part of North East Link, which will fix the missing link in Melbourne’s freeway network, take 15,000 trucks off local roads every day and slash travel times by up to 35 minutes.
Construction of the new Doncaster Park and Ride is on track to begin next year and is planned for completion by 2028.
Images: Victorian Government
