eastern freeway upgrade, M80 Ring Road Upgrade, melbourne, North East Link, Victoria,
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The designs for the first stage of the Eastern Freeway Upgrade and the completion of M80 Ring Road in Melbourne have been released, with construction works to begin in early 2024.
From north to east, works will begin in early 2024 to overhaul two of Melbourne’s busiest freeways.
These two massive projects will connect with the North East Link tunnels – slashing travel times by 35 minutes and taking 15,000 trucks off local roads a day.
The two new Urban Design and Landscape Plans (UDLPs) include detailed maps and drawings for the Ring Road Completion and the first stage of the Eastern Freeway Upgrades.
People can make a submission in October 2023 on the plans and help shape local design elements in their area by telling us what they think of the look and feel of what’s planned.
The Ring Road to the North East Link tunnels will be linked with new express lanes to take 19,000 cars and trucks off Greensborough Road a day. Also, new walking and cycling paths will be built, new wetlands will be built, and improvements to local reserves and new landscaped bridges for better local trips to Watsonia Station and shops.
The Eastern Freeway will get a massive overhaul with new express lanes and Melbourne’s first dedicated busway – slashing travel times and improving public transport. Also, new and upgraded noise walls will be built to meet a better noise standard, improve walking and cycling connections and plant more than 1.8 million new plants including 10,000 trees to return improved open spaces after construction.
In its first major upgrade since the 1990s, the Eastern Freeway will see more than 45 kilometres of new lanes, a dedicated busway, and state-of-the-art technology that will help deliver 11-minute travel time savings.
Tough new noise standards will also be introduced along the length of the Eastern Freeway, with new and upgraded noise walls to give homes even better protection.
The project will also deliver Melbourne’s first dedicated busway from Doncaster to the city, and an upgraded Park and Ride at Doncaster.
From early 2024, construction compounds will be set up including a major works site at Koonung Creek Reserve, to support the 700-strong workforce. About a third of the reserve will remain open throughout construction and a temporary diversion will keep the Koonung Creek Trail connected.
When complete, the Eastern Freeway upgrades will connect seamlessly with the new 6.5km North East Link Tunnels – linking Melbourne’s east with the M80 Ring Road, slashing travel times by 35 minutes and taking 15,000 trucks off local roads a day.
The plans show how these 2 massive projects will meet the strict requirements in place for North East Link project design developed in consultation with the community through the Environment Effects Statement process.
Information from submissions to the Ring Road Completion and Eastern Freeway Upgrades UDLPs will be used to finalise the plans before submitting them to the Minister for Planning for approval.
Major construction on the two freeways will start in 2024 as work continues to connect them to the North East Link tunnels in Watsonia and at Bulleen.
Source: © State Government of Victoria, Australia 2023 | © State Government of Victoria
Image Source: © State Government of Victoria, Australia 2023
Two consortia appointed as the preferred bidders for Eastern Freeway Upgrades
Two world-class consortia have been appointed as the preferred bidders for the next major elements of the Eastern Freeway Upgrades.
North East Link early works lands As-built ‘leading’ infrastructure sustainability rating
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North East Link has been awarded a Leading As Built IS Rating score of 82.8 out of a 100 for the delivery of the Early Works package.
