An improved north-south arterial road through Braybrook, Tottenham and Brooklyn is essential to protecting residents from heavy truck traffic, according to Maribyrnong Council.
A report to Tuesday night’s council meeting by Infrastructure and Engineering director Ian Butterworth found the current north-south route along Ashley Street, Dempster Street, Paramount Road and Tottenham Parade is disjointed and congested, with constraints on improving capacity.
The report finds that the proposed Western Distributor means better connectivity to the West Gate Freeway will be necessary to better protect the residential inner west from heavy truck traffic.
“Traffic congestion and road safety continues to worsen along this route as the western suburbs grow.”
The council will lobby roads minister Luke Donnellan for the development of an improved north-south arterial road upgrade and widening through Braybrook, Tottenham and Brooklyn.
“The problem of a missing north south link through the municipality has been identified for many years and reservations for road widening along the route were created by Government in the mid 1980s and some properties acquired by VicRoads,” the report stated.
“A number of transport strategies and plans have identified the need to upgrade this route over the past 15 years and it was intended to be included in the previously mooted Truck Action Plan and WestLink projects.”
Council’s Integrated Transport Plan (MITS) calls for an enhanced north south arterial road route connecting Military Road, Avondale Heights to the West Gate Freeway, Brooklyn to reduce congestion and truck traffic impacts on the inner west residential suburbs.
The report notes Ballarat Road is already congested Somerville Road and Sunshine Road will be at peak hour capacity by 2025 unless action is taken.
“Demand on these roads and on other parallel east – west links such as Geelong Road will also be affected by any future upgrades to the West Gate Bridge corridor.”
