Yan Yean Road works causing havoc in household of fed up Plenty family

Roadworks are a fact of daily life in the burbs, but after weeks of sleepless nights, thick dust blanketing their property and multiple tyre punctures, one Plenty family has had enough.

Darren Bayley and his family are sick of disruptive roadworks on Yan Yean Rd. Picture: Hamish Blair

Yan Yean Rd upgrade works are causing a family to lose sleep, clean away dust every day and fork out money to repair constant tyre punctures.

Darren Bayley said he had driven his car over four nails in the last 10 weeks, his wife drove over one, and all caused punctures.

And the Bayleys say the Yan Yean upgrade works, going since the start of the year, are to blame.

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“Before these works started we’ve never had punctures to any of our cars and we’ve been in the area for 20 years,” Mr Bayley said.

And out of 93 motorists who participated in a Leader poll, 43 agreed there was an increase in tyre punctures near Yan Yean Rd since works started.

The furious father also said his family were dealing with daily dumping of dust and dirt from nearby works at their Mackelroy Rd home in Plenty.

“We don’t know what we’re breathing in — you can even smell it through the airconditioner,” he said.

“No matter how much I’m washing cars, windows, outdoor tables, you name it, there is a thick layer of dust every day.”

Darren Bayley says his driveway is caked with a thick layer of dust and dirt every day. Picture: Hamish Blair

Mr Bayley said his daughter was also struggling to sleep due to night-work lights shining right through her window, even with blinds.

“We’re not against the work they are doing on Yan Yean Rd, we just want our complaints listened to and some better consultation with the community,” he said.

Major Road Projects Victoria (MRPV) program director Damien Afxentis said noise and dust impacts would be unavoidable, but construction partner BMD had plans in place to minimise disturbances.

“Dust and dirt is sometimes unavoidable when constructing a new road, particularly during summer, however we manage this by minimising earthworks on high wind days and watering earthworks to reduce the chance of dust and dirt being disturbed,” he said.

“Certain construction activities can produce noise and ground vibration, which can be disruptive to those living and working nearby.

“We manage noise and vibration by scheduling noisy activities during daytime working hours where possible.”

Mr Afxentis said MRPV had treated one complaint about dust and dirt with a water cart which was sent to their location.

“Overall, we monitor air quality to ensure it remains well within Victorian guidelines, and urge residents concerned about the dust, dirt, noise or vibrations being generated by our construction works to contact us,” he said.

“With regards to claims of vehicle damage, MRPV requires photographic evidence or an invoice of work before this will be considered.”

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