2016 RACV Leader News Redspot Survey highlights Melbourne’s worst congestion

IT’S that time again when we reveal Melbourne’s worst traffic hot spots — and the number one source of your frustration will come as no great surprise.

THE site of the eastern end of the proposed East West Link is our worst traffic hotspot, according to Melbourne drivers.

More than 18,000 people took part in the 2016 RACV/Leader News Redspot survey, which found the number one traffic congestion hot-spot that drives Melburnians mad is the meeting of the Eastern Freeway, Alexandra Parade and Hoddle St in Clifton Hill.

And the RACV and State Opposition leader Matthew Guy say that is further evidence the East West Link and the extension of the Western Ring Rd through the northeastern suburbs need to be built.

Six of the top 10 congestion hot spots named in the this year’s survey fall within the corridor from Clifton Hill to Greensborough and Templestowe, which the RACV says is an area that would benefit from the North East Link.

 

The North East Link would connect the Western Ring Road with the Eastern Freeway and EastLink.

RACV public policy general manager Brian Negus listed their priorities, in order, as the North East Link, increasing bus services to the northeastern suburbs and the East West Link.

With the State Government’s decision not to build the East West Link, Mr Negus said other ways of fixing the major congestion in Melbourne’s northeast needed to be considered.

“The survey highlights that priorities should be the Metropolitan Ring Rd/North East Link and increasing bus services to the northeastern suburbs,” Mr Negus said.

“Clearly there is massive congestion here so there needs to be solutions for the short and long terms.”

Mr Guy said the East West Link had “never been more needed”.

“The Coalition is committed to looking at all options to get the North East Link started. It’s a big project but it has to happen, just like the East West Link.”

State Roads and Road Safety Minister Luke Donnellan said the intersection of Hoddle St and the Eastern Freeway was a “critical choke point”.

“That’s why we are proposing designs for the Eastern Freeway and Hoddle St interchange as part of the $60m Streamlining Hoddle St project,” Mr Donnellan said.

“This project seeks to move more people, more efficiently along and across the Hoddle St and Punt Rd corridor.”

Mr Donnellan said the government was building the transport infrastructure Melbourne needed, including the Melbourne Metro, removing the most congested level crossings, building the Western Distributor and upgrading the Monash Freeway, the Tullamarine Freeway and the M80.

The government has also committed $110m to build a six-lane bridge to improve the flow of traffic on the Chandler Highway in Kew, which was previously ranked commuters’ worst nightmare, and came third on the 2016 Redspot survey.

Mr Negus said the survey results had been analysed by RACV transport engineers and would be provided to VicRoads, Public Transport Victoria and local councils.

“Evaluation of the experiences and opinions of respondents helped secure more than $1.5 billion to improve Redspots since the last survey but there still is a long way to go,” he said.

The Redspot Survey is run by the RACV in partnership with Leader News and 7 News. Respondents are asked to nominate what they consider to be the worst areas of traffic congestion. In 2016, more than 18,000 people took part in the survey, more than double the number of respondents in any previous Redspot survey.

The site of the proposed East West Link has been rated Melbourne’s worst traffic congestion area in the 2016 RACV Redspot Survey. Picture: Brendan Francis

RACV REDSPOT SURVEY 2016 — TOP 10

1: Eastern Freeway/Alexandra Parade/Hoddle St (Clifton Hill/Collingwood)

2: Rosanna Rd/Jika St/Dora St/Banksia St Lower/Heidelberg Rd (Heidelberg)

3: Chandler Highway between Heidelberg Rd and Princess St (Alphington/Kew)

4: Thompsons Rd/Westernport Highway (Skye)

5: Fitzsimmons Lane between Main Rd and Porter St (Eltham/Templestowe)

6: Greensborough Highway between Metropolitan Ring Rd and Grimshaw St (Greensborough)

7: Point Cook Rd between Princes Freeway and Sneydes Rd (Seabrook)

8: Eastern Freeway/Bulleen Rd/Thompsons Rd (Balwyn North)

9: Maroondah Highway/Dorset Rd (Croydon North)

10: Toorak Rd between Milton Parade and Auburn Rd (Kooyong)

TOP 2016 RACV REDSPOTS BY MUNICIPALITY

BANYULE

■ Rosanna Road/Jika St/Dora St/Banksia St/Lower Heidelberg Rd, Heidelberg

BANYULE/MANNINGHAM

■ Fitzsimons Lane between Main Rd and Porter St, Eltham/Templestowe

BANYULE/NILLUMBIK

■ Greensborough Highway between Metropolitan Ring Rd and Grimshaw St, Greensborough

BAYSIDE

■ Nepean Highway/South Road Intersection, Bentleigh

BAYSIDE/KINGSTON

■ Highett Road railway crossing, Highett

BOROONDARA/YARRA/DAREBIN

■ Chandler Highway between Heidelberg Road and Princess St, Alphington/Kew

BOROONDARA

■ Eastern Freeway/Bulleen Rd/Thompsons Rd, Balwyn North

■ Burke Rd/Toorak Rd, Camberwell

BRIMBANK

■ Kings Rd/Taylors Rd roundabout, Delahey

■ Western Ring Rd — Keilor East to St Albans

CARDINIA

■ McGregor Rd railway crossing, Pakenham

CASEY/FRANKSTON

■ Thompsons Rd/Western Port Highway roundabout, Skye

■ Western Port Highway/Hall Rd toundabout, Skye

CASEY

■ Hallam North Rd/Heatherton Rd roundabout, Narre Warren North

DAREBIN

■ High St railway crossing, Reservoir

■ Bell St railway crossing, Preston

■ St Georges Rd/Merri Parade, Northcote

FRANKSTON/CASEY

■ Thompsons Road/Western Port Highway roundabout, Skye

■ Western Port Highway/Hall Road Roundabout, Skye

GLEN EIRA

■ Murrumbeena Rd railway crossing, Murrumbeena

■ Koornang Rd railway crossing, Carnegie

■ Glen Huntly Rd, Glen Huntly

■ Centre Rd railway crossing, Bentleigh

GREATER DANDENONG

■ Monash Freeway/EastLink interchange, Dandenong North

■ Heatherton Rd railway crossing, Noble Park

■ Corrigan Rd railway crossing, Noble Park

HOBSONS BAY CITY/WYNDHAM

■ Point Cook Rd between Sneydes Rd and Princes Freeway, Seabrook

HUME

■ Gap Rd/Horne St roundabout, Sunbury

■ Mickelham Rd/Broadmeadows Rd roundabout, Westmeadows

KINGSTON CITY

■ Balcombe Rd railway crossing, Mentone

■ Boundary Rd/Governor Rd roundabout, Mordialloc

KINGSTON CITY/BAYSIDE

■ Highett Rd railway crossing, Highett

KNOX

■ Stud Rd/Wellington Rd, Rowville

■ Wellington Rd/Lysterfield Rd, Lysterfield

MANNINGHAM/BANYULE

■ Fitzsimons Lane between Main Rd and Porter St, Templestowe/Eltham

MANNINGHAM

■ Bulleen Rd/Manningham Rd, Balwyn North

■ Kangaroo Ground-Warrandyte Rd/Yarra St roundabout, Warrandyte

MAROONDAH

■ Maroondah Highway/Dorset Rd, Croydon North

■ Maroondah Highway/Oban Rd, Ringwood

MELBOURNE

■ Elliott Ave between CityLink and Royal Parade, Parkville

CityLink between Footscray Rd and the West Gate Freeway, Docklands

MELTON

■ Coburns Rd/Barries Rd, Melton

MORNINGTON PENINSULA

■ Mornington Peninsula Freeway/Jetty Rd, Rosebud

■ Mornington-Tyabb Rd/Racecourse Rd roundabout, Mornington

MONASH

■ Ferntree Gully Rd/Springvale Rd, Glen Waverley

■ Springvale Rd/High Street Rd, Glen Waverley

MOONEE VALLEY

■ Buckley St railway crossing, Essendon

MORELAND

■ Glenroy Rd railway crossing, Glenroy

■ Bell St between CityLink and Sydney Rd, Coburg

NILLUMBIK

■ Greensborough Highway between Metropolitan Ring Rd and Grimshaw St, Greensborough

■ Yan Yean Rd/Ironbark Rd, Yarrambat

■ Diamond Creek Rd/Yan Yean Rd, Diamond Creek

■ Kangaroo Ground-Warrandyte Rd/Research-Warrandyte Rd, North Warrandyte

STONNINGTON

■ Toorak Rd between Milton Parade and Auburn Rd, Kooyong

■ Tooronga Rd railway crossing, Glen Iris

■ Glenferrie Rd railway crossing, Kooyong

WHITEHORSE

■ Blackburn Rd railway crossing, Blackburn

WHITTLESEA

■ Epping Rd/Findon Rd roundabout, Epping

■ Plenty Rd/Bridge Inn Rd roundabout, Mernda

■ Plenty Rd/Childs Rd roundabout, Mill Park

WYNDHAM/HOBSONS BAY

■ Point Cook Rd between Sneydes Rd and Princes Freeway, Seabrook

YARRA

■Eastern Freeway/Hoddle St/Alexandra Parade, Clifton Hill/Collingwood

YARRA RANGES

■ Hull Rd/Cambridge Rd roundabout, Mooroolbark

■ Wellington Rd/Lysterfield Rd, Lysterfield

■ Maroondah Highway/Killara Rd, Coldstream