Residents donned gas masks on Saturday to protest against the Western Distributor shifting air pollution and truck traffic into Spotswood.
The Spotswood South Kingsville Residents Group rallied at McLean Reserve against the proposed road design, which would shift truck traffic to their neighbourhood, right next to Spotswood’s only sports field and kindergarten.
Spokeswoman Christine Harris said the group was also against Simcock Avenue being used as an entry or exit point.
“One of the aims of this project is to get trucks off residential streets, and it doesn’t make sense to move them to an even quieter local street,” she said. “It’s currently our quiet entry and exit point to the suburb, and we don’t want it becoming a major truck route.
“They’re talking about 1000 vehicles going along there to get onto the on ramp, 500 of those being trucks carrying dangerous goods – placarded trucks.
“That’s also the entrance for Scienceworks, which has half a million visitors every year, mainly families and children.”
The protest came as a Hobsons Bay councillor described the road design as a “dog’s breakfast”.
Cr Angela Altair said the new road would negatively impact residents and industry on the Hobsons Bay side of the West Gate Bridge.
“It’s a dog’s breakfast of a design and I’m yet to speak to anybody who thinks it is an efficient and effective way to manage traffic off the freeway, so it’s not even going to solve any problems.”
The council at last week’s meeting reaffirmed its “strong position for both the on and off ramps to be sited north of the freeway while protecting Stony Creek”, and its “deep disappointment with the state government”.
