Footscray Road is undergoing a transformation and will soon connect the West Gate Tunnel to the Port of Melbourne, Melbourne’s CBD and CityLink roads.
Minister for Roads and Ports, Luke Donnellan, and Member for Footscray, Marsha Thomson, said that workers are shifting the road south so construction can start to the north.
The Footscray Road bike path is being moved closer to the port to create more room for construction.
Traffic barriers are now in place on the southern side of Footscray Road as crews get to work in preparation for building the new roadway and a state-of-the-art ‘veloway.’
The elevated roadway along Footscray Road will join new bridges over the Maribyrnong River, providing a vital second river crossing for drivers.
The veloway – a 2.5km cycling freeway – will be suspended under the new road, giving riders a safe express route between the city and Melbourne’s west, and creating a continuous journey from Werribee to the city.
A section of the former Melbourne Market site was demolished earlier this month to make way for a West Gate Tunnel Project site compound to provide a base for 500 of the workers plus storage for the large equipment and machinery needed to build this massive project.
Major works will ramp up in the precinct in early 2019 to build the elevated road, with almost 1,600 concrete segments lifted into place over a two-year period by cranes sitting on top of support piers around 30 metres above the ground.
Works along Footscray Road will be staged to allow construction to take place safely on different parts of the road while maintaining access for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians.
Drivers will be kept moving with all lanes open during peak periods while works are carried out.
