How much dodging peak-hour can save motorists

Analysis of travel patterns by tolling giant Transurban shows drivers can save up to an hour a week. See how your commute compares.

Suburban road commuters could save up to an hour a week if they travel just outside peak hour, according to modelling by tolling giant Transurban.

The company has revealed it expects an 11 per cent surge in traffic as Victorians go back to the office and more workers choose to drive than ­before the pandemic.

They warned that this would lead to further congestion but have analysed travel patterns to determine where people could save time.

Transurban modelling shows commuters from Berwick, for example, could save up to 75 minutes a week by leaving for work at 9am, rather than 8am, and finishing at 6pm rather than 5pm.

City-bound motorists could enjoy significant reduction in traffic congestion by leaving later. Picture: Daniel Pockett

By avoiding the rush of commuters who left at 8am or 8.30am, city-bound motorists would notice significant reductions in traffic congestion.

Sunbury and Point Cook residents, similarly, could save an hour a week by avoiding the morning peak.

Cross-city journeys could also benefit, and Victorians travelling from Sunshine to Chadstone could shave off 13 minutes of driving each day if they avoid the roads at 8.30am and 4.30pm.

Transurban general manager of operations, Phil Naulls, said Victorians did not have to return to their former travel patterns.

“Making tweaks to your old travel routine and getting into new habits now will not only save drivers time, our city will be better for it,” he said.

“We can all agree that debilitating congestion should not be the inevitable outcome as we are moving around more, so embracing workplace flexibility to go to and from the office an hour either side of the traditional peak could make all the difference.”

Average peak-hour trips on Hoddle St blew out to nine minutes post-lockdowns in March. Picture: Nicki Connolly

A survey of Melburnians found an increase in the number of people who expected to use their cars for work, with 11 per cent more planning to use them to commute daily.

By comparison, the number of people who expected to use public transport every day fell by 41 per cent compared with at the start of the pandemic.

It comes after the Herald Sun revealed that travel times on key roads across inner Melbourne had doubled as office workers returned to the city.

Average peak-hour trip times on Hoddle St blew out to nine minutes in March, while the Monash Freeway has been bogged down by construction work and an increase in the number of vehicles.