Overpass reaches new heights

Piling along the Ison Road overpass. Inset: an aerial view of the project. (Pictures: Supplied)

The Ison Road Overpass project has hit new heights – literally – as it works toward helping link Wyndham West with the Princes Freeway.

Since December, Major Road Projects Victoria (MRPV) crews have placed and compacted 15,300 truckloads of soil to form towering embankments for the overpass bridge approaches.

Rising to a height of eight metres, the embankments have become a prominent landscape feature on either side of the Melbourne-Geelong railway line at Werribee.

The project has trucked in 236,000 cubic metres of soil to build the embankments – enough to fill 94 Olympic swimming pools.

Crews have also made significant progress with the completion of piling works to help build the foundation for the overpass, installing more than 1000 steel-reinforced concrete piles.  

With the project continuing apace, an average of 60 people are working on-site daily in a variety of roles. Combined, they have worked over 60,000 hours since work on the overpass began in November, according to MRPV.

Once complete, the four-lane overpass Ison Road Overpass will extend over the Melbourne-Geelong railway line toward the Princes Freeway.  

Future-proofed for six lanes, it will give residents access to surrounding areas and minimise traffic in central Werribee, reducing congestion and improving journey reliability, MRPV said.

The project’s opportunities for active transport will include shared walking and cycling paths over the bridge and a cycling path underneath the bridge.  

“With our earthworks and piling works on schedule, we’re making great strides in building the foundations for the road and bridge overpass,” MRPV project director Damian Van Dyke said.

“Residents can look forward to better access to surrounding areas and minimised traffic in central Werribee as we continue working with construction partner Decmil to deliver this important project.”

Due for completion by the end of 2025, the overpass is set to cater for nearly 29,000 vehicles a day by 2036. 

The state and federal governments will invest a total $114 million to deliver the project. 

Details: bigbuild.vic.gov.au/ison