By Tate Papworth
The notorious intersection at Sunshine Avenue and Melton Highway will be removed under a state Liberal government.
Liberal candidate for Niddrie Ben Reeson toured the intersection last week and said the roundabout needed to go.
“Whether I’m speaking to local residents or businesses they all tell me that traffic is getting worse and it’s impacting on their daily lives,” Mr Reeson said.
“Removing the intersection at Sunshine Avenue and Melton Highway will help residents get around our local area and ease the congestion crush.
“You come off the highway and end up getting hit, nearly getting hit, or stuck in traffic for ages.
“You don’t want to spend hours stuck in traffic when you leave work.”
Mr Reeson said traffic volumes on Sunshine Avenue and Melton Highway have increased in recent years, substantially increasing the risk for motorists and pedestrians.
He said removing the intersection would also benefit business by allowing people to get between jobs more quickly.
Opposition spokesman for Roads and Infrastructure David Hodgett also toured the site and said the public had made its voice heard.
“Many of our intersections have seen little change since the 1990s, so it’s time to upgrade them for 2018 and beyond,” Mr Hodgett said.
“You come off the freeway and in a very short distance you come across a bottleneck.
“This will be one of the intersections included in our policy.
“We’ll dip lanes under so traffic will come off the freeway and continue to flow through this intersection without having to stop.”
If elected, the LNP will invest between $4.1-$5.3 billion to remove 55 of Melbourne and Geelong’s most dangerous and congested intersections.
