Drivers travelling across Melbourne’s West Gate Freeway should be aware of extra travel time beginning from Wednesday, January 10 until early March.
Delays of up to 30 minutes are estimated as the Victorian government enters the next stage of works on the West Gate Tunnel Project.
Workers will begin widening the West Gate Freeway from eight lanes to 12 as the tunnel draws closer to opening in 2025.
The upcoming works will deliver new road surfaces along the West Gate between Millers Road and the M80 Ring Road Interchange, making more room for motorists.
There will be closures on the outbound exit from the West Gate Freeway to the M80 Ring Road for nine days from Wednesday, with further lanes and ramps closed until early March.
State minister for transport infrastructure Danny Pearson says the project will be a pivotal part of moving motorists across Melbourne’s west.
“As the West Gate Tunnel Project embarks on a busy summer of works, we encourage motorists to plan ahead and allow extra travel time,” he says.
“The West Gate Tunnel Project will transform travel in Melbourne’s west, providing a vital alternative to the West Gate Bridge that will cut congestion and take 9,000 trucks a day off local roads.”
“The widening of the West Gate Freeway is a key part of the West Gate Tunnel Project that will help cut travel times between the west and the city by 20 minutes.”
Drivers travelling to Geelong or Ballarat on the West Gate will experience lane changes between mid-February and early March, with overhead and electronic signs in place.
There will also be occasional overnight closures on the West Gate and Princes Freeways between Kororoit Creek Road and Williamstown Road until mid-2024 to install 46 massive steel overhead gantries.
Wurundjeri Way will also be closed between Dudley Street and Bourke Street from 12 January to early March, while there will be further lane and road closures on Footscray Road.