The entirety of Ballan Road needs to be duplicated as soon as possible, according to a stalwart of the Manor Lakes community.
Greg Byrne created a Facebook page called ‘Fix Ballan Road Now Before Someone Else is Killed There’ in 2011.
He said the state government has not duplicated enough of the road to cater for the increased traffic caused by more than 10 new housing estates that have been built since he first called for action.
“I came to Werribee in 1979 and Ballan Road was basically the same as it was now, except for a few duplicated sections,” he said.
Mr Byrne said between Werribee and Jubilee estate in Wyndham Vale was where the traffic gets most severe.
“They have duplicated a section just past Commuter [Boulevard] up to Jubilee estate, but it is a kilometre-and-a-half of duplicated road that still leads into a bottleneck at each end,” he said.
My Byrne also said that the persistent traffic issues could be eased by re-routing the two parts of McGrath Road that are separated by Ballan Road into a new intersection, avoiding the roundabout with Greens Road.
“The two halves of McGrath Roads aren’t even connected, the common sense thing to do would be to join them,” he said.
“Looking at the current design, it appears it’s going to make it worse, not better.”
Mr Byrne said he and many others are at the end of their tether with the status quo.
“After 4pm on any day, without a word of a lie, it can take you 40 minutes to get to Manor Lakes from Werribee,” he said.
“It just destroys you, because you know damn well it is going to add half an hour or 45 minutes to your day.
“My daughter and I live a street apart and we are thinking about moving because of the traffic.”
The Department of Transport and Planning was contacted for comment.
