Traffic troubles in the northern suburbs require a new link between Craigieburn and Sunbury, according to federal McEwen MP Rob Mitchell.
Mr Mitchell has written to Hume council proposing an extension of Craigieburn Road to connect with Melbourne-Lancefield Road to help ease traffic congestion.
“An extension of Craigieburn Road [west] through to Sunbury would lead to better connectivity between these two residential centres, which would in turn make sharing important services more convenient for our constituents,” Mr Mitchell wrote. “It could also alleviate traffic issues on Sunbury Road and through Bulla while providing another route to access the [Calder] highway.”
Hume council chief executive Dominic Isola said properties would have to go if a link was built.
“Such a proposal would be difficult to achieve due to difficult topography and lack of a readily available route. The road reserve for Craigieburn Road ends at Deep Creek, so a link could not be achieved without … acquisition.”
Mr Isola said the council’s preferred option for improving access between the two towns was to construct the proposed Bulla Bypass. “This [would] extend the alignment on Somerton Road to the west over Deep Creek and create a high-standard road link between Sunbury and areas in the east of Hume.”
The planned bypass and link to Melbourne Airport was opposed by Planning Minister Richard Wynne, who rejected the advice of a panel of planning experts that land for the freeway be reserved now for future compulsory acquisition. He said the proposed route would create hardship for properties in its path and risked making equestrian farms unviable.
