A federal MP is among residents venting their frustration at the latest round of road closures caused by works on the West Gate Tunnel Project (WGTP).
Residents in inner-west suburbs such as Spotswood and Yarraville have taken to social media this week to complain about traffic congestion caused the closure of ramps on and off the West Gate Freeway which began on February 21.
On Wednesday, Gellibrand MP Tim Watts posted on Facebook that he’d contacted Transport Infrastructure Minister Gabrielle Williams’ office every day this week to complain about the congestion and ask what they were doing to address it.
The current congestion is caused by ramp closures at Grieve Parade and Millers Road to allow for continued works on the WGTP, including the laying of asphalt on inbound and outbound lanes.
Mr Watts said the state government gave him the following advice to pass on to motorists.
“People in Altona North could consider heading north up Millers Road and taking Little Boundary, Boundary Road and the M80 Ring Road to get onto the West Gate Freeway inbound – or Geelong Road and Footscray Road,” he said.
“For people in Newport, Spotswood and Williamstown, an alternative would be Douglas Parade and Hyde Street and then onto Footscray Road.”
Below Mr Watts post, motorists expressed fury at the traffic gridlock with one calling it “disgraceful and so unsafe.”
“Drivers are getting sick of waiting in long lines, they are taking very big risks to cross congested intersections,” they said.
“It’s so intense, no matter which direction,” said another.
“Trucks, vans, cars piled up on every road this morning on my short trip from Newport to Kingsville.”
Williamstown MP, Melissa Horne, said she was working with local councils and the transport department to alleviate the problem.
“We’ve put in place a couple of mitigation measures, one of which is talking to the City of Maribyrnong about getting a not right hand turn sign at Benbow St and Williamstown Rd in Yarraville. The other is about changing the sequencing of the lights to allow better flow of traffic,” Ms Horne said.
A spokesperson for Maribyrnong council confirmed they were assisting with mitigtion efforts while a spokesperson for Hobsons Bay council said they were not responsible for any roads impacted by the closures, but urged the WGTP to finish the works as soon as possible.
Gabrielle Williams was contacted for comment.
