Elsie Lange
A local business and residents have voiced their frustration about the closure of Gap Road between Evans and Horne streets in Sunbury from late May until late 2022 while the level crossing is removed.
Frank Buffone, owner of Tyrepower, said the closure was a “massive” concern for his shop in its location on the corner of Evans and Station streets – right where the works are set to take place.
“Now I need to figure out what to do with my business, and discussions are being had about how we operate and how we enable our customers to get to us,” Mr Buffone said.
“We’re concerned about the fear of people actually coming down here, and the anxiety of people being able to get to this particular site.
“It’s well known, previous to these works, it was the best site in Sunbury for a tyre shop… but now we are being cut off from the west side of Sunbury,” he said.
A Facebook comment on Star Weekly’s article about the closure said, “Sunbury’s roads are stuffed now”.
Another comment said, “What a nightmare, Sunbury is not set up for that”.
Mr Buffone said while there had been discussions with the project team from Rail Projects Victoria, he wasn’t made aware of the timeframe of the works until it was announced on Monday, March 21.
He was under the impression that works would start in early 2022 and finished mid-2022 – before his busier period in the middle of the year.
“I was told the dig should have started in the first week of February and would only last three months,” he said.
A Rail Projects Victoria (RPV) spokesperson said they’d been liaising with Sunbury traders since before the pandemic.
“We’ve been working with local businesses in Sunbury since 2019 on ways to minimise impacts and limit disruption to customers, staff and suppliers as major work gets underway on removing Sunbury’s worst bottleneck – the Gap Road level crossing,” the spokesperson said.
“Once complete the new Gap Road underpass will ease congestion and make getting around Sunbury quicker and safer for the whole community.”
It is understood RPV will support traders through the works, including by providing wayfinding signage, engaging in promotional activities and by advertising in local media.
On March 21, Transport Minister Jacinta Allan and Sunbury MP Josh Bull announced the closure, starting Monday, May 30, which will allow for crews to remove the boom gate and build the new rail bridge and road underpass.
But Mr Buffone said he felt out of the loop.
“I’ve just survived Covid and lockdowns… but for this part of it, I really do feel a little bit isolated, especially because the competition is on the other side,” Mr Buffone said.
