UPDATE: Parents and residents say new bans on trucks in Footscray and Yarraville are welcome but more needs to be done to take trucks off residential streets.
New curfews that came in effect from Thursday ban trucks from Somerville Road in Yarraville during school crossing hours and from Footscray’s Moore Street overnight.
Maribyrnong Truck Action Group president Samantha McArthur said the curfews were a good start but not a solution to the problem of trucks on inner-west residential streets.
“There will be other streets in the inner west that will see an increase in truck numbers as trucks change their routes to observe these new curfews,” she said.
“The City of Maribyrnong will still see 21,000 trucks per day on residential streets and the majority of these are through traffic.”
Ms McArthur praised Maribyrnong council for its lobbying efforts and the Victorian Transport Association for its willingness to compromise to ease the suffering of residents in the short-term.
Scott Adams, of Less Trucks for Moore, said the overnight ban on non-local trucks on Moore Street followed a 400 per cent increase in night-time truck traffic in recent years.
“It’s got to the point where many of us just can’t sleep.”
VicRoads officers have begun a blitz on enforcing the expanded truck curfews. Drivers face $148 on-the-spot fines for flouting the ban.
The curfews were announced late last year by the then-Coalition government.
Roads Minister Luke Donnellan, who announced the new curfews on Thursday morning, said the next step in tackling inner-west truck traffic would be building the West Gate Distributor.
“We will keep monitoring truck and traffic volumes in the area, because the peace, quiet and safety of these streets matter.”
Williamstown MP Wade Noonan said the state government would do all in its power to move freight traffic from local streets and onto the completed distributor.
Footscray MP Marsha Thomson said the curfews should make a real difference to residents.
“At last the residents in Moore Street should get some relief with 400 less trucks in Moore Street every night.”
Our earlier reports
Yarraville: Somerville Road truck curfew a ‘good start’
Truck curfew wins on Moore Street and Somerville Road
