Jacksons Hill road project delayed again due to COVID-19 pandemic
It was first touted as a vital road connection for Sunbury commuters three decades ago, but the project is now delayed due to COVID-19. The latest setback comes as an MP clashed with the council to get it done as a “matter of urgency”.
North West
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A long-touted Jacksons Hill connector road has been delayed again due to the coronavirus.
A week after Sunbury state Labor MP Josh Bull wrote to Hume Council Mayor Carly Moore calling for the project, 30 years in the making, to be completed as a “matter of urgency” the council confirmed the road had been held back until at least next year.
Mr Bull said all State Government planning approvals were in place for the road’s construction and the imminent removal of the Sunbury level crossing would mean motorists would need alternative road options during construction.
But the council said the road would not be completed before level crossing works begin.
Hume Council Mayor Carly Moore said the road project was complex, with planning underway to investigate cultural heritage at the site, complete land survey assessments and address seven ‘roadblocks’ in the way.
“I appreciate the desire is for Yirrangan Rd to be opened before the closure of Gap Rd/Station St,” she said.
“(But) there are a range of complexities that prevent the council from being able to complete the project ahead of the recently advised schedule for the level crossing removal.”
Mr Bull said motorists had waied long enough for construction to commence.
The road would provide another path for motorists to access Jacksons Hill, the Sunbury town centre and to enter the Calder Fwy.
The road was first outlined in the early 1990s by Hume Council, which noted the “imminent construction” of the connector road to be built in the early 2000s.
In 2012 the council’s Hume Integrated Growth Area Plan Spatial Strategy document listed it as a key connections road to the Calder Fwy.
COUNCIL’S SEVEN JACKSON HILL ROADBLOCKS:
1. Land would need to be secured from private properties with the council unable to secure it until at least 2021.
2. Work on the Cultural Heritage study, which was expected to be completed in August 2020, is now delayed due to COVID-19, primarily to ensure the safety of aboriginal elders.
3. An approved Cultural Heritage Management Plan is required before starting high impact activity. This has delayed the soil investigation works, decisions to design a bridge or culver crossing over Harpers Creek.
4. Melbourne Water approval will be required for the above creek crossing.
5. Geotechnical investigation was scheduled to begin in September 2020, but cannot start without the CHMP.
6. A functional design for the railway underpass needs to be completed.
7. Property acquisition cannot take place until points two to six are resolved.
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