The health crisis in the west due to excessive truck usage in Maribyrnong will be addressed and funded through council grants.
The 2023-24 state budget includes funding to improve air quality for Melbourne’s inner west communities by providing councils in the region with co-contribution grants to seal unsealed roads under council management, reducing airborne dust pollution.
Grants will also be made available for transport operators to modernise the truck fleet travelling through the inner west.
The funding comes one week after Maribyrnong council declared a health emergency in the municipality and called on the state government to take proactive measures to reduce pollution.
The budget also includes funding to modernise facilities at Altona and Footscray West primary schools.
Altona Primary School will receive $115,000, while Footscray West will receive $195,000.
Rosamond Special School will receive $1.69 million, while Footscray City Primary School has been allocated $8.5 million, the Kinnear Street campus of Footscray High School will benefit from $9.64 million and Bayside P-12 College will receive $5.55 million
The budget also included $634.37 million for the new Footscray Hospital, which is already under construction.
Following the October 2022 floods, the government is also planning for future upgrades to the Footscray VICSES facility.
Point Cook Road in Altona Meadows will also be upgraded, according to the budget papers, while a new cemetery has been planned for Altona East.
Jennifer Pittorino
