By Kevin Hillier
“Why don’t you write something about the traffic in Werribee?” If I had a dollar for every person who has said that to me lately, I would be a wealthy man. We all know the traffic in the 3030 area, and those numerically close, is slow, frustrating and costly.
The Werribee CBD and any road, street, lane or path that feeds into and out of it is STUFFED. That is a road maintenance engineering technical description meaning STUFFED. The construction works in Synnot and Watton streets have compounded what was already a first-gear crawl space and made any motion in a forward direction glacier-like. While it is painful for motorists, I feel for the businesses in the area and I hope they can ride out the short-term pain for the long-term gain.
The future vision for the area is exciting and will undoubtedly transform an ugly duckling into something we can all be proud of. Hopefully, a thriving retail and lifestyle precinct will emerge. Weathering the development process is going to be a challenge for a long while yet. Whatever you can do now to support the businesses in that area will make a big difference to their future. I am not sure what compensation – if any – they are eligible for, given this is all in the name of commercial progress from which they will ultimately benefit.
Some creative thinking might be needed from the businesses in the area to adapt operating hours and offer special deals to attract consumers into the area at non-peak times. It is a real challenge, one for which I am sure the assistance of bodies such as the council’s Vibrant City Centres and Economic Growth Department would be available.
A collective and co-operative alignment of ideas and strategies is the way to achieve the best outcomes in this and similar situations. The traffic situation in the CBD is certainly not the only one that is frustrating and annoying. The railway gates at Hoppers Crossing should officially be rezoned for parking. Then there is Sayers Road.
The list goes on and on. That is why I don’t write about the traffic in Werribee. ■
