Victoria’s first ever fully digital Environment Effects Statement (EES) is now open for submissions, making it easier for community members to learn more about Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) East and have their say on the city-shaping project.
The EES is a milestone moment and includes new details about how SRL East between Cheltenham and Box Hill will be designed and delivered.
The EES is Victoria’s most comprehensive and transparent planning and environmental assessment process – it assesses the benefits and potential impacts of construction and operation of SRL East, and proposes ways to reduce and avoid impacts on our community and the environment.
The SRL station at Box Hill will be surrounded by inviting open space.
More than 580 geotechnical investigations, hundreds of other expert studies and 10,000 lab tests, as well as extensive stakeholder consultation and feedback from more than 20,000 people has informed the design development of SRL East as well as its EES, which has been prepared over the past two years.
The digital EES gives a chance to find out more about potential impacts to traffic and transport, the environment, noise and vibration during SRL East construction, and cultural and social impacts and how these will be mitigated.
The EES also includes new concept designs of the six new underground SRL East stations and their concourses, and the attractive public spaces around each – right next to thriving retail and hospitality centres in Melbourne’s middle suburbs.
Users can jump on to the easy-to-use online EES platform and explore videos, interactive maps and images, or delve into the detail in 36 independent technical reports on topics such as ecology, groundwater, landscaping, and heritage.
They include details about construction methods used for the 26-kilometre twin tunnels and cross passages, the operation of tunnel boring machines, and how construction has been planned to minimise disruption to communities.
SRL East will deliver immediate benefits for people in Melbourne’s south east and the Gippsland region when it opens in 2035. By 2036, there’ll be around 70,000 daily trips on SRL East – with nearly half of passengers shifting from their cars. Construction on Initial and Early Works from next year will create up to 800 early direct jobs.
The EES can be viewed from the comfort of homes and written submissions will be accepted until 11.59pm on Thursday 16 December 2021, with public hearings to be held in 2022.
More reading