The state government has scaled back plans to upgrade two busy roundabouts within close proximity of each other in Taylors Lakes and Keilor.
A 2023 VicRoads explanatory report on the project detailed plans to signalise two intersections on Sunshine Avenue that cross with the Melton Highway and also with the Old Calder Highway.
According to Transport Victoria, the state government will instead install one set of traffic lights at the Melton Highway and Sunshine Avenue roundabout and add new turning lanes to both roundabouts.
Current turning lanes on the Melton Highway and Sunshine Avenue roundabout will be extended and the pedestrian crossing on Shoppers Lane will also be upgraded.
Former Brimbank mayor and retired town planner Bruce Lancashire said the two roundabouts regularly cause traffic to back up significantly.
“Roundabouts can only take a certain volume of traffic before they start to bottleneck. They’re great for low volume and they add safety, however there gets to a point where you have to upgrade traffic lights to get the traffic through,” Mr Lancashire said.
“To turn round and say ‘look we’ve changed our mind’ is extremely disappointing.”
Mr Lancashire believes the altered plans won’t solve traffic congestion in the area.
“It’s still good to have that [one set of traffic lights] done but the roundabouts are very close together so my concern is that you still won’t get rid of the bottleneck if you don’t fix both,” he said.
In the August council meeting Brimbank council said the state government had advised it that the original project was descoped due to funding.
Council said it raised its concerns of the two roundabouts not being replaced with traffic signals to senior staff at the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP).
Star Weekly contacted the DTP for comment which said it continues to monitor traffic at the site to inform planning.
“We’ll continue to work closely with Brimbank council and the community as this project progresses,” the spokesperson said.
According to Transport Victoria, planning and early works for the upgrades are expected to be complete next year, with timelines for major construction to be confirmed at a later date.
