The Level Crossing Removal team have finished 24/7 works at Diggers Rest on the weekend as part of the Old Calder Highway Level Crossing Removal Project.
The Old Calder Highway and Watsons Road level crossing are being removed, with new road bridges to carry vehicles over the rail line, permanently separating them from trains.
The team worked 24/7 from Friday night to Monday morning last weekend (6/9 – 9/9) to install new track and lay foundations for new overhead signalling wiring in the rail corridor.
The new road bridge will connect Old Calder Highway to Diggers Rest-Comadai Road and includes a raised bike path to make it safer for cyclists to get around.
Site establishment at Watsons Road will start later this year, with both level crossings gone for good in 2025.
More than 8000 vehicles use the Diggers Rest level crossings every day, with 27 trains travelling through the boom gates during the morning peak, creating 36 minutes of boom gate down time.
The project will take the Sunbury Line one step closer to being level crossing free in 2025. Together with the Metro Tunnel the projects will allow more trains, more often for commuters in Melbourne’s north.
In total 110 level crossings are being removed across Melbourne by 2030, with 84 already gone for good.