Vital freeway ramp to close for over two weeks – significant delays expected
09/05/2024 09:18 PM
Pain for motorists as interchange from Melbourne's M80 Ring Road to West Gate freeway to close between 6 and 23 September.
Continuing works on the West Gate Tunnel project in Melbourne's west will see the citybound on-ramp that connects the M80 Ring Road to the M1 West Gate Freeway close for over two weeks.
Starting at 9pm tonight, Friday 6th September, the ramp will be closed for construction of an extra lane and resurfacing until 5am on Monday 23rd September.
During the closure, drivers are recommended to exit the M80 Ring Road at Boundary Road to rejoin the M1 Freeway at Grieve Parade, with a release from Danny Pearson, the Victorian Minister for Transport Infrastructure, noting there will be "significant delays" and that drivers should allow an extra 45 minutes for their journey.
The roadworks will see traffic detour via a left-turn merge, a set of traffic lights (cnr Boundary Rd and Spencer St), a roundabout (where both lanes can turn right), another two sets of lights (northern and southern intersections of Little Boundary Rd and Westside Drive), more lights on the left-merge at Princess Highway, and again at the two-right-turn lanes onto Grieve Parade, then the return on-ramp to the M1.
The total detour is approximately 3km.
According to data represented by the Victorian Department of Transport, the southbound on-ramp alone carries an average of 77,000 vehicles per day, with the surface streets impacted by the detour already dealing with anywhere between 12 and 17,000 vehicles per day.
The data notes that 13 per cent of these vehicles are trucks.
Pain for motorists doesn't end once the ramp is reopened however, with the citybound exit ramp of the Westgate Freeway set to close in October for month-long works to install a cycle bridge. Part of Footscray Road will also closed in October for cycling works.
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