A FATAL incident at Werribee’s Cherry Street level crossing has renewed calls for an upgrade.
A Truganina woman, 65, was killed last Friday night when a Melbourne-bound freight train hit the passenger side of the car in which she was travelling.
Police believe the car, driven by a woman in her 30s, was stuck on the tracks when a car in front of it broke down.
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The driver was freed, and taken to The Alfred hospital where she remains in a stable condition.
The death occurred on what was supposed to be a cautious day on Wyndham’s roads to mark Fatality Free Friday.
The scene of several near misses in recent years, the Cherry Street crossing was ranked 13th in a 2008 report detailing the state’s most dangerous level crossings. It is yet to receive funding for a grade separation.
Cr Shane Bourke said it was essential the state government provided money to improve Cherry Street, as well as the Hoppers Crossing and Werribee Street crossings.
“It’s astounding that after all this time we are not getting funding,” he said.
“It’s outrageous the government thinks we are not important enough to get funding for the safety of our community.”
Tarneit MP Tim Pallas said the government’s failure to upgrade the crossing was putting people’s lives at risk.
He said the upgrade of a level crossing in Brighton, ranked 214 in the 2008 report, showed the government had based decisions on politics rather than need. The government did not respond to the claims.
Last October, Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder’s spokesman reaffirmed a $379million government commitment to abolish Melbourne’s level crossings in its first term, and said its list took into account safety and congestion issues.
