- Minister for Transport Infrastructure
Tens of thousands of people in the fast-growing communities of Lyndhurst, Cranbourne West and Lynbrook will get home sooner and safer as the Andrews Labor Government gets on with a $1 billion pipeline of road and rail projects for the south east.
Visiting Lyndhurst today, Minister for Transport Infrastructure Jacinta Allan said that the Evans Road level crossing removal would be fast tracked, with work to build the new road bridge to begin this year and be complete in 2020.
Major upgrades to the nearby intersection of Evans Road, Hallam Road and South Gippsland Highway, along with the removal of the level crossing, will enable Evans Road to reopen.
Evans Road has been closed at the level crossing since 2005, dividing the communities of Lyndhurst, Lynbrook and Cranbourne West, and forcing drivers to take lengthy detours.
When Evans Road reopens, it will reconnect communities making it up to four time faster to travel across the rail line to the South Gippsland Highway.
The level crossing removal complements several upgrades on the Cranbourne line that will boost road and rail capacity and make travel easier. Three more level crossings located at Webster Street, Camms Road and Greens Road will go, making the Cranbourne line the first to be level crossing-free.
Site investigations are underway to duplicate eight kilometres of single track between Dandenong and Cranbourne by 2023. Duplication will remove bottlenecks, enable trains to run every ten minutes, and pave the way for the line to be extended to Clyde.
The area will also benefit from the Thompsons Road Upgrade with 4.3 kilometres of new lanes set to open in mid-March between Dandenong – Frankston Road and Lyndhurst Boulevard along with the newly signalised Westernport Highway intersection.
Drivers will experience safer and more reliable journeys when all duplication road works are completed and the twin three lane bridges over the Cranbourne line open in mid-2019.
Safety improvements at one of Melbourne’s most notorious intersections will also be fast tracked as part of the project following the installation of traffic lights at Dandenong-Frankston Road by early 2020.
As stated by Minister for Transport Infrastructure Jacinta Allan
“We are getting on with the job of removing the last four remaining dangerous and congested level crossings to help people get home sooner and safer.”
“Removing the remaining level crossings and duplicating the line will pave the way for more trains, more often.”
As stated by Member for Cranbourne Pauline Richards
“Our local community is one of the fastest growing communities in Victoria so we’re getting on with these vital upgrades that will cater for locals now and well into the future.”
