By Noel Towell
An artist's impression of the North East Link at Doncaster.Credit: Victorian Government
The Eastern Freeway will swell to more than 20 lanes at its widest point - rivalling some of the world's widest roads - under the state government's plans for its $15.8 billion North East Link.
In addition to the 14 carriageway lanes that will flow through Doncaster and Balwyn North when the road is complete, four emergency lanes, two bus lanes and on- and off-ramps will widen the road at the junction of Doncaster Road to as much as 94 metres.
The state government released more detailed plans on Sunday of the city's "missing link" road, billed as Victoria's biggest-ever road project and featuring nearly 5.8 kilometres of tunnels carrying six lanes of traffic.
The new road, which now has the support of both major political parties, will connect the Eastern Freeway to the M80 ring road.
The newly-released plans show a 1.2-kilometre lowered section along Greensborough Road. In response to concerns from residents, the government has also promised additional sound walls to reduce traffic noise.
The plans show a five-kilometre tunnel from Lower Plenty Road in Rosanna connecting to the Eastern Freeway at Bulleen Road.
But it is the behemoth new intersection at Doncaster that catches the eye, with its 14 lanes of traffic, four emergency, two bus lanes and on- and off-ramps rivalling some of the world's widest roads.
Highway 401 near the Toronto Airport in Canada spans 18 lanes. But both are still dwarfed by the Hong Kong-Macau Expressway at 50 lanes.
Labor has promised the road would go out to tender within 100 days if is re-elected in November, with construction to start in 2020 and the road to open in 2027.
Premier Daniel Andrews said on Sunday the link would be Victoria's largest-ever road project and would create 10,000 jobs while under construction.
"It is a big project and it adds to an already enormous infrastructure agenda," the Premier said.
"Something like 130,000 vehicles will use the North East Link every day, that's not only going to make it one of our biggest road projects but one of our busiest roads."
But not everybody is impressed by the scale of the proposal, with Boroondara Mayor Jim Parke saying the council and its community were very worried about the impact of a massively expanded freeway.
"The proposed eight-lane widening of the Eastern Freeway and its associated interchanges will significantly reduce the public open space available to the community by replacing the Koonung Creek parkland, the Boroondara Tennis Centre and part of the Freeway Golf Course with concrete and bitumen," Mr Parke said.
"The additional traffic ... much of which will be heavy vehicles, will generate unacceptable noise levels for adjacent residents while also generating at least 10 per cent more traffic onto Bulleen Road which runs through our residential area."
To the north of the freeway, Manningham councillor Dot Haynes said the impact of the massively expanded road would be "devastating".
"It's absolutely disgusting," she said. "This is going to be devastating, absolutely devastating, you will not be able to build a wall high enough to stop that level of noise reaching houses."
Mr Andrews said there was no change to the expectation that up to 75 homes and 140 businesses would have to be compulsorily acquired to make way for the road but those affected would be treated with "respect".
Upgrades are planned for the Eastern Freeway, as part of the new North East Link project.
"People have been treated respectfully, they've been given the information they need and that consultation process will continue," the Premier said.
Mr Andrews said the final numbers of homes and businesses to be acquired would be fixed when the environmental effects study and the competitive tender process were both complete.
Bruce Plain, of the Bulleen Art and Garden, said the businesses slated to close to make way for the road currently employed more than 1000 people between them.
Mr Plain conceded that the consultation had improved, but what was needed was the political will to help businesses to relocate more quickly and easily.
"It would be fantastic for [Opposition Leader] Matthew Guy and Daniel Andrews to make a commitment to work with councils to fast-track any re-zoning that would allow businesses to relocate," Mr Plain said.