Motorists told to expect delays during West Gate Freeway roadworks

Motorists are being told to expect lengthy delays during January as works to widen the West Gate Freeway get underway. Roads will be closed and detours put in place.

Huge delays on the Westgate Freeway are expected during upcoming roadworks. Picture: Sarah Matray

Motorists on Friday got a taste of the pain to come, with lane closures on the West Gate Bridge causing commuter chaos.

Bridge maintenance will force the closure of three of the five inbound lanes during the day until Tuesday.

Four inbound lanes will be closed each night from 9pm.

Works will also take place around the clock to prepare for widening the freeway, which connects Melbourne’s western suburbs to the city, with disruption from January 13 until the end of February.

“It will be disruptive, but we can’t build the West Gate Tunnel and deliver other vital road upgrades without these works,” Acting Premier ­Jacinta Allan said on Friday.

Drivers experienced the misery on the first day of the roadworks on Friday, with the closure reducing the number of available lanes to just two, causing delays of about 20 minutes.

Approx 8:30am first day of lane closures on Westgate Bridge inbound. Huge delays on the Westgate Freeway inbound as 3 lanes are closed for maintenance on the bridge until New Years Eve. Elsewhere roads are very quiet. Picture: Sarah Matray

One driver caught in it told the Herald Sun the ­closures affected only a ­relatively short distance but it was still “frustrating”.

“If you were on one of the left lanes it wouldn’t have been so bad, but it would have taken a long time for someone on the right side to get across,” they said.

Detours and delays of up to 30 minutes are expected as the widening works reach their peak, with road signs showing real-time travel information.

The delays come as Supreme Court documents reveal another blow for the government over the troubled West Gate project.

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Documents obtained by the Herald Sun show property developer CVCV Land Co bought a parcel of land in Altona North for $8,690,000 in 2017.

The state government then rezoned the land, increasing its value.

In December last year, the state government announced it would compulsorily acquire the land for the West Gate Tunnel Project, and offered CVCV Land Co $22.5 million.

CVCV Land Co wants $45.2 million for the land. With the claim in dispute, the matter has been referred to the Supreme Court.

CLOSURES:

The city-bound ramp from the M80 Ring Road to the West Gate will be closed January 13 to end of February;

Geelong-bound ramp from Geelong Road to Princes Freeway from January 13 to end of February;

Millers Road outbound exit and entry ramps onto to West Gate Freeway closed from January 13 until mid-February;

Intersection at Dohertys and Fitzgerald roads completely closed for first three weeks of January; and

Queen Street bridge in Altona closed “intermittently” throughout January.

Originally published as Motorists told to expect delays during West Gate Freeway roadworks