St Kilda Rd works for Metro Tunnel project to cause traffic snarls

TRAFFIC on Melbourne’s premier boulevard will grind to nearly a halt as works for the Melbourne Metro rail tunnel forces lane closures on and around St Kilda Rd.

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ST KILDA Rd will become a traffic nightmare for up to three years because of work on the Melbourne Metro tunnel.

The pain will begin in the next two months when lanes will be closed.

But the thousands of motorists in Melbourne’s southeast should be prepared for long-term pain from early next year when a key section of St Kilda Rd will become just one lane each way for three years.

Already a traffic bottleneck, the key pinch point between Bowen Crescent and Kings Way will be reduced to a single lane for about 300m. And part of nearby Domain Rd will be closed for five years for construction of the underground Domain station.

St Kilda Rd carries 3000 cars and 8000 tram passengers in peak hour.

St Kilda Rd drivers will experience traffic pain for up to three years. Picture: Jason Sammon

The Metro Tunnel Authority ­estimates travel times on St Kilda Rd during the worst of the construction will increase by 29 per cent in the evening peak and 25 per cent in the morning peak.

In the short-term, thousands of commuters will have to find alternative routes to work as traffic on St Kilda Rd and surrounds slows to a snarl.

The main disruption will be in the last week of June and the first two weeks of July.

From June 24-30, there will be only two lanes open in each direction on St Kilda Rd, to enable major track works needed to reroute trams around the Domain construction site.

But the biggest commuter crush will be from July 1-11, when only one lane will be open in each direction.

There will also be no access to St Kilda Rd via Kings Way outbound during that period, while buses will replace trams along St Kilda Rd near Toorak Rd West.

Traffic will be diverted from Swan St Bridge to nearby roads. Picture: George Salpigtidis

Cars are already being diverted from Swan St Bridge — which is just one lane until July — to nearby roads as it undergoes an upgrade.

Domain Rd, Park St and Commercial Rd will take diverted traffic.

In the long term, the government has warned that other arterial roads — such as Kings Way and Punt Rd — would be expected take more of the traffic load, especially at peak times.

Work on the new Toorak Rd west tram line will mean lane closures during the July school holidays.

Roads Minister Luke Donnellan said the closures were necessary to build the tunnel.

“We’re getting on with the Metro tunnel — to run more trains, more often right across Melbourne,” he said. “I thank motorists and passengers for their patience while we get this vital work done.”

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