Point Cook residents will have better access to the Princes Freeway within two years, with construction of the Sneydes Road interchange to start next month.
The diamond interchange will give Point Cook motorists alternative access to the Princes Freeway, making it easier for them to drive to Melbourne and Geelong.
The interchange will be built in two stages, with the Melbourne-bound lanes to be constructed first. Work will then start on the Geelong-bound lanes, before the Sneydes Road bridge over the freeway is removed.
The project is part of a $72 million government investment into transport and planning infrastructure at Point Cook and East Werribee.
Following a sod-turning ceremony for the project last week, Western Metropolitan Liberal MP Andrew Elsbury said the interchange was a “key piece of infrastructure” for the East Werribee Employment Precinct and would provide additional transport links for Werribee and Point Cook.
“East Werribee will become a key employment and investment location,” he said.
“This project will encourage investment and development within the precinct, which has been planned to deliver 58,000 jobs and 7000 new homes.
“The interchange will support this development … by providing unprecedented access to the Princes Freeway for Werribee and the East Werribee site.”
Mayor Bob Fairclough said he was pleased the interchange would be completed before residents moved into Point Cook West and East Werribee.
“This is a critical road project for the city,” he said “The residents of Point Cook have lobbied hard with us for transport infrastructure to keep pace with rapid residential growth.”
The government has also pledged $9.6 million to realign Hoppers Lane with the Princes Highway as well as funding to upgrade Sneydes Road.
The start of the interchange work follows the government’s request in June for expressions of interest from companies keen to develop the first stage of the East Werribee precinct.
The first stage of the precinct will be 400 hectares and include a town centre and housing.
