About 70 workers have been stripping back 40 years of wear and tear on the West Gate Bridge as part of a $70 million face lift on the iconic bridge connecting Melbourne to the western suburbs, including Williamstown and Newport.
Suspended under the bridge on a number of platforms 58 metres above the ground and the water, the crew have then applied more than 55,000 litres of anti-corrosive paint across an 848-metre section of the bridge, with grey paint used for the majority of the bridge and white paint used on the bridge props.
Williamstown MP Melissa Horne said a further $27.7 million allocated in the 2022-23 state budget for ongoing works would assist in keeping the bridge structurally sound and safe, reduce lane closures and keep motorists, freight and visitors to Melbourne’s west moving smoothly.
“Ongoing maintenance for one of our most important assets will ensure the bridge remains safe and strong for another 40 years,” she said.
The package also included $8.23 million for bridge pier strengthening.
Roads and Road Safety Minister Ben Carroll said the ongoing works aimed to keep the bridge standing strong for decades to come.
“A dedicated, hard-working team of specialists have been working through all seasons over the past three years to complete major repainting works to protect it from Melbourne’s adverse weather,” he said.
