Riders in Melbourne's far southeast will benefit from some major road upgrades soon underway in Pakenham.
Funded by the Federal Government and delivered by Major Road Projects Victoria (MRPV) the upgrades will remove some nasty intersections and provide much better access for riders on existing routes and some major new bike corridors coming in future years to the rapidly developing region.
Major changes are being made to Racecourse Road, McGregor Road and the Princes Freeway with the project delivered in three stages, with upgrades to the Princes Freeway the first to get underway.
Racecourse Road is part of a planned Strategic Cycling Corridor that will connect to the upgrade of the Road to Koo Wee Rup, which will have a new bike trail along its length.
Planning is underway now with construction to start early next year and completion in 2025.
The Princes Freeway Upgrade includes:
- installing new shared walking and cycling paths to improve pedestrian and cyclist connectivity
- upgrading the freeway interchanges at Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Road, replacing both roundabouts with traffic lights building an extra bridge over the Princes Freeway at Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Road to provide two lanes in each direction building new east-facing ramps to and from the Princes Freeway at McGregor Road
- adding an extra lane in each direction on the freeway between McGregor and Healesville-Koo Wee Rup roads to connect the entry and exit ramps between the two interchanges
- adding extra lanes on Healesville- Koo Wee Rup Road between Peet Street and Southeast Boulevard/ Livestock Way, so that it is two lanes in each direction installing safety barriers and new street lighting to improve safety.
Stage Two will comprise the McGregor Road Upgrade and Stage Three the Racecourse Road Upgrade.
The Pakenham Roads Upgrade is part of a wider investment in improving transport infrastructure in Pakenham.
This includes the removal of the level crossings at Racecourse Road, McGregor Road and Main Street, two new train stations at Pakenham and upgrades to Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Road between Southeast Boulevard/Livestock Way and Manks Road.