West Gate Tunnel build to crimp Wurundjeri Way in Docklands

Brace for more traffic pain linked to the West Gate Tunnel project with a key route in the Docklands set to close.

MOTORISTS are being warned of looming traffic snarls through Docklands as the road network changes for the new West Gate Tunnel.

Wurundjeri Way is expected to totally close overnight with daytime lane closures in “the coming months”.

The alert comes as frustrated drivers already face three another three months of Footscray Rd closures. The busy western arterial will close in one direction or the other until late June with roadworks to continue until 2025.

But no dates have been locked in for the Wurundjeri Way changes which include extra lanes and an extension to the north.

Wurundjeri Way in the Docklands will close overnight and have daytime lane closures.

“Work will pick up in this area over the coming months and we will make sure road users and nearby residents and businesses are well informed of any disruptions before they start,’’ a West Gate Tunnel Project spokesperson said.

An extra lane in each direction is being added to Wurundjeri Way between Dudley St and Flinders St.

The road will also continue on an elevated road over Dudley Street to Dynon Rd.

The link is to create a new city bypass and reduce north-south congestion on King and Spencer streets in the city centre.

The Wurundjeri Way structural works include relocating high-voltage power lines, building bridge bases and creating the new lanes.

The building of a new elevated road above Footscray Rd has meant the normally busy route will close one direction at a time.

All inbound lanes are closed until early April, after which the outbound carriageway will close until early June.

West Gate Tunnel construction around Footscray and Dynon roads. Picture: Tim Carrafa

When the outbound works are finished, the road will close inbound again until late June. Detours are funnelling traffic down Dynon Rd.

Victorian Transport Association chief executive Peter Anderson said Wurundjeri Way was a major arterial for freight vehicles travelling between Melbourne’s two ports.

And the road was also an essential route for larger vehicles which are not allowed on West Gate Bridge, he said.

The looming traffic headaches will be further pain for motorists in the city’s west, especially suburbs such as Spotswood, Williamstown, Altona and Yarraville. Roadworks on the West Gate Freeway west of the bridge have pushed out travel times as motorists try to get to work or school.

Some people are so fed up that are staying at home to work to avoid the gridlock.

Suburban side streets often become “traffic sewers” as lines of cars wait for an opening on already clogged main roads.

Data from HERE Technologies found that the average speed of a trip from Williamstown into the CBD was 61.7km/h in February 2022 but this year it was just 34.5km/h.