CFMEU dispute overnight triggered West Gate Tunnel traffic chaos

The CFMEU claims a stop-work action on the West Gate Freeway, which left commuters stranded for hours, was needed because the project had put workers and public safety at risk.

Premier Daniel Andrews has apologised to commuters after a construction union stopped overnight works on the West Gate Freeway, causing chaos that left motorists stuck in traffic for more than an hour.

WorkSafe attended a West Gate Tunnel construction site early on Thursday morning after CFMEU officials demanded the joint venture building the $10.6bn project produce safety certificates for concrete structures that had been lifted by crane.

Inbound lanes on the freeway had been blocked off overnight to enable crews to move the structures into place hours before the morning peak.

Traffic down to one lane inbound on the West Gate Freeway at Williamstown Road due to @WestGateTunnel works running overtime. Consider using Geelong Road or Ballarat Road instead. Or take a Williamstown or Werribee line train. Allow plenty of extra time. #victrafficpic.twitter.com/kLV2HT3pFo

— VicTraffic (@VicTraffic) March 2, 2022

But the stop-work action delayed the reopening of the lanes, causing road chaos during Thursday morning’s peak hour.

It is understood the union refused to allow works to proceed, despite WorkSafe assurances that there were no safety issues on site, leading to police being called.

The CFMEU officials eventually left the site, meaning lanes could be reopened.

A trail of traffic more than 20km long was banking up along the West Gate by 7am, with motorists coming into the CBD from Hoppers Crossing taking one hour to get through the choke point.

But an unrepentant CFMEU claimed the project had put workers and public safety at risk.

“This union will never compromise on workers’ safety,” a statement said.

“This project has already taken one life and that is one too many.”

West Gate tunnel project works continue around Williamstown Road after the CFMEU dispute caused commuter chaos. Picture: Mark Stewart

An engineer died at a piling worksite in 2018 after being struck on the head.

Mr Andrews apologised to commuters for the inconvenience caused, saying safety issues at the site were still being investigated.

“Things went wrong overnight and I understand it’s deeply inconvenient for a large number of people,” Mr Andrews said.

“We do a lot of work overnight, we try to pack it all up by morning but sometimes something goes wrong.”

The Premier said he was yet to be briefed on any safety issues which may have impacted the CFMEU’s decision to halt work.

Mr Andrews refused to confirm whether it was his understanding that the CFMEU were behind the chaos.

Premier Daniel Andrews says he has yet to be briefed on safety issues that may have affected the CFMEU’s decision to stop work. Picture: David Crosling

“I don’t want to speculate on matters that I’m not fully briefed on,” he said.

“In essence, it’s important to acknowledge that it’s been a very difficult morning for a lot of people. That’s regrettable.

“We’ll try and better understand what happened and make sure it doesn’t happen again. I am very sorry about it.”

Asked what could be done to control the powerful union if it was confirmed they had acted to “flex their industrial muscle”, the Premier responded: “Let’s just work out what’s happened here first before we start running to conclusions and hypothesising on what might need to happen”.

He added: “Clearly a whole lot of people who needed to get to where they were going couldn’t get there in good time. I am upset about that. I deeply regret that. It’s a function of work that should have been done overnight, packed away and the road reopened for the morning. That didn’t happen.”

Mr Andrews used the opportunity to spruik the ‘biggest construction agenda in our state’s history’. Picture: Mark Stewart

Mr Andrews used the opportunity to spruik the “biggest construction agenda in our state’s history”, adding it was a common occurrence for disruptions across the road network.

But he acknowledged: “This is a little bit different though and that’s why we need to get a full understanding of what happened.”

Opposition leader Matthew Guy said the incident was another example of the government’s “inability to manage major projects”.

“This West Gate project is meant to be concluding in 2022 and it appears to have only just started,” Mr Guy said.

“This project is years overdue and billions of dollars in the red ... is there no project the government can manage on time and on budget?”

The road chaos on the West Gate Freeway left motorists stuck in traffic for more than an hour. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

Opposition spokeswoman for Roads Steph Ryan labelled the delays on Thursday morning as “unacceptable and avoidable but completely true to form”.

“It beggars belief that a disagreement over safety certificates is disrupting commutes more than four years after construction works began,” Ms Ryan said.

“This is more of the same from Minister for Excuses Jacinta Allan, further highlighting her inability to manage any sort of major project.

“Amateur hour is a gross understatement of this morning’s chaos.”

Ms Ryan said accountability over the West Gate Tunnel projects had been “almost non-existent”.

“Jacinta Allan should be front and centre this morning apologising to commuters and explaining why this has happened, but she is nowhere to be seen,” Ms Ryan said.

“The Premier didn’t fare much better when he labelled his Labor government’s road chaos as nothing more than an inconvenience.”

A driver who called into 3AW said traffic was “bedlam”.

“It is not rational that you would cut the road off with all these cars sitting here taking two hours to do a 20-minute trip,” she said.

There were also delays on the Princes Freeway from Hoppers Crossing.

All lanes were opened inbound by 9.30am but motorists were warned the congestion would take time to clear.

A West Gate Tunnel spokesman said the site, near Williamstown Road where planned works were taking place on the West Gate Freeway, should have been finished by 5am.

“WorkSafe attended and no safety issues were identified,” he said.

“This caused delays packing up a crane that was being used for the planned works, which meant lanes could not reopen in time for the morning peak.

“The resulting traffic caused issues for traffic teams as they worked to re-open the lanes.”

Originally published as CFMEU dispute overnight triggered West Gate Tunnel traffic chaos