By rosebell
Considering all asphalting and line-marking now finished inside the twin tunnels, Melbourne’s West Gate Tunnel Project is a step closer to its December opening, whereas the first end-to-end drive of the completed 2.8km citybound tunnel has been done by Premier Jacinta Allan, minister for transport infrastructure Gabrielle Williams and minister for roads and road safety Melissa Horne on 10 November.
In August before work moved to complete the 4km outbound tunnel in September, asphalting commenced in the citybound tunnel and over than 15,000 tonnes of asphalt have been laid.
In order to preparing the new connection for motorists’ use later this year, crews are continuing to test the tunnel’s safety systems, lights and traffic management systems.
Additionally, work is undergoing above ground on new green space, a walking and cycling path, and more than 1,700 architectural cladding panels installed at the tunnel entry and exit point.
Linking to a new elevated sky road above Footscray Road, the West Gate Tunnel Project is due to take traffic underground from the West Gate Freeway to the Maribyrnong River.
The intention of planning this project is to deliver faster, more reliable journeys from the western suburbs to CityLink, the Port and the CBD, while the number of trucks that it will daily remove from local roads is 9,000 trucks.
More than 45,000 people are expected to walk or run through the tunnel at the West Gate Tunnel Discovery Day on Sunday, November 16.
