The Victorian Government has removed its 85th “dangerous and congested” level crossing in Melbourne, opening a new road bridge to traffic in Beaconsfield.
Minister for Transport Infrastructure Gabrielle Williams announced the Station Street level crossing is gone for good and the new McKenna Drive bridge is now open to motorists connecting Beaconsfield Avenue to Kenilworth Avenue over the Pakenham Line.
With this level crossing gone, the Pakenham Line is one step closer to being level crossing free later this year, with just two sets of boom gates left to go from Melbourne’s busiest rail line.
The milestone coincides with the release of updated safety data which says the Level Crossing Removal Project has made Victorian roads safer by preventing 111 crashes and near misses every year.
The program has also reportedly slashed travel times in the morning by saving 55 hours of boom gate down time.
The safety data is backed by new figures from Metro Trains showing the number of train and vehicle collisions and near misses across the metropolitan network has fallen by almost 80 per cent since 2019, from an average of 11 incidents a month to just two incidents a month last year.
The Level Crossing Removal Project is one of the largest rail infrastructure projects in Victoria’s history, delivering major improvements across the rail network while supporting more than 6,000 jobs.
The program has also delivered 54 new and upgraded stations, 7,000 car parking spaces, 60 kilometres of walking and cycling connections, and has made way for 20 MCGs worth of open spaces, with approximately 3.4 million grasses and shrubs and 27,000 trees planted across Melbourne.
Passengers on the Pakenham Line will also have access to five new underground stations when the Metro Tunnel opens later this year.
The Level Crossing Removal Project is removing 110 level crossings across Melbourne by 2030.
Minister for Transport Infrastructure Gabrielle Williams said: “In 2021 we made a promise to get rid of 85 level crossings by 2025 and that’s exactly what we’ve done.
“Getting rid of the Station Street, Beaconsfield level crossing brings the Pakenham Line one step closer to being boom gate free in 2025, transforming journeys in our city’s south east.”
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