Sixty-Sixth Annual Report
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VICTORIA COUNTRY ROADS BOARD Sixty-sixth Annual Report For the year ended 30 June 1979 Presented to Both Houses of Parliament Pursuant to Act No. 6229 MELBOURNE F. D. ATKINSON, GOVERNMENT PRINTER 1979 No. 45 f 60 Denmark Street, Kew 3101 28th September, 1979 The Honorable Robert Maclellan, MLA Minister of Transport 570 Bourke Street. Melbourne 3000 Sir In accordance with the requirements of Section 128 of the Country Roads Act 1958 No. 6229, the Board submits to you for presentation to Parliament the report of its proceedings for the year ended 30th June, 1979. The Board wishes to thank the Government for the support and interest in its activities and wishes to place on record its appreciation of the continued co-operation and assistance of State Ministers, Government departments, State instrumentalities and municipal councils. The Board also pays tribute to the continued loyal co-operation and work done by its staff and employees throughout the year. Yours faithfully T H Russell MEngSc (Hons.), BCE (Hons.), DipCE, FIEAust. Chairman WSBrake BCE, CE, M lE Aust. Deputy Chairman N LAIIanson AASA (Senior}, JP Member G KCox LLB, JP Secretary I' "t Country Roads Board Victoria Sixty-sixth Annual Report for year ended 30th June, 1979 Presented to both Houses of Parliament pursuant to Act No. 6229 The CRB is the State Road Authority of Victoria. The CRB's aim is to create an efficient road system within the context • of the overall transportation needs of the community. There are about 160,000 km of public roads in Victoria, of which 23,706 km comprise the CRB's network of the State's principal roads. The lengths of roads declared or proclaimed under the Country Roads Act are State Highways 7,022 km, freeways 288 km, main roads 14,567 km, tourists' roads 798 km, forest roads 1,031 km. T H Russell WS Brake N LAIIanson Chairman Deputy Chairman Member , Principal Officers as at 30th June 1979 KG Moody G KCox· R G Cooper Engineer in Chief Secretary Chief Accountant N S Guerin P J McCullough R J C Bulman Deputy Engineer Deputy Secretary Deputy Chief in Chief Accountant .. Divisional Engineers and Regional Divisional Offices AN Jephcott ETOppy B H Chandler Bairnsdale Ballarat Benalla T M Glazebrook S H Hodgson G W Marshallsea Bendigo Dandenong Gee long J WHeid R R Patterson D T Currie Horsham Metropolitan Traralgon F G Lodge . Warrnambool Contents Review Municipal Road construction funding 4 Municipal allocations 39 New borrowing powers 5 Municipalities Forest Roads Improvement Fund 39 ' Road maintenance charges 5 Visits to municipalities 39 Australian Roads Report 5 Deputations 39 Board members 6 35th conference of municipal engineers 39 Draft Transport Plan for Victoria 7 Significant works on main and unclassified roads 40 Johnson Street Bridge opening 8 West Gate Bridge opening 9 Other projects and activities New Autograde 9 National Park roads 46 Eastern Freeway traffic study 9 Roads of tourist interest 46 Traffic management and road safety 10 NAASRA 46 Flood and storm damage restoration works 12 ARRB 47 Co-operation with Army Reserve 47 The road system Public relations 48 of State highways, Freeways, Personnel 48 Forest roads and Tourists' roads 14 Legislation affecting the Board 52 Road construction and maintenance Finance 54 Major projects 18 Contracts 20 Appendices 58 Bituminous surfacing 20 Significant works State highways and Freeways 22 Tourists' roads 24 Forest roads 24 Land purchase 25 Bridges Construction of new bridges 26 Major bridges completed in rural areas 26 Metropolitan bridges and overpasses 27 Grade separated pedestrian crossings 27 Elimination of railway level crossings 27 Road Planning Road planning studies 28 Bicycle studies 31 Energy and road transport 31 Traffic services Linemarking 33 Control of overdimensional and overweight vehicles 33 Traffic information services and driver education 33 Snow clearing 34 Emergency services 34 Traffic signal co-ordination of areas in Melbourne 35 Roads and the environment Environmental Studies Section 36 St Kilda Junction landscaping 38 2 Main roads- construction work completed or substantially completed by municipal councils during the year: 1. Wh ittlesea Shire- Reconstruction of the Mai n Wh ittlesea Road between Cades Road and Donnybrook Road, Shire of Whit11esea . 2. Eltham Shire- Roundabout at the Eltham-Yarra Glen Road/Eitham • Templestowe Road intersection, Shire of Eltham. 3. Widening of 1.6 km of the Dandenong Frankston Road nearing completion, City of Dandenong. 4. Construction of a 5 span bridge carrying Navarre Road over the Wimmera Ri ver, Shire of Stawell. 5. New 3 span bridge carrying Tarra Valley Road over the Tarra Ri ver, Shire of Bairnsdale. 3 Review Road construction funding Rural projects The inadequate level of funds available to the Board Project Description of work continues to be a matter of concern. Many essential projects in both the urban and rural areas of the State Calder Highway Construction of climbing could be accelerated or commenced in 1979/80 to lanes, intersection the economic benefit of the community if additional improvements, and funds were made available to the Board. Some regrading to remove examples of significa[lt projects are listed in the crests between Gisborne following table. and Bendigo. Cann Valley Highway Reconstruction north of Urban area Fiddlers Green Creek. Glenelg Highway Widening narrow Project Description of work sections west of Skipton. Arterial Road Extension Thompsons Road to Goulburn Valley Highway Extension of duplication of the Eastern Freeway Doncaster Road. south of Shepparton. Burwood Highway Construction of additional Goulburn Valley Highway Reconstruction in lanes between Seymour. Springvale Road and Great Ocean Road Reconstruction on Wantirna-Sassafras improved alignment Road. between Apollo Bay and Calder Highway Bypass of Keilor. Calder River. La Trobe Terrace, Reconstruction between Henty Highway Reconstruction between Geelong Hope Street and Fyans Hamilton and Cavendish. Street. Maroondah Highway Replacement of bridge Mt Candenong Tourists' Widen and strengthen over Connellys Creek at Road sections between Beauty Acheron. Bend, Ferny Creek and Midland Highway Reconstruction from Montrose. Bagshot to El more. Maroondah Highway Reconstruction between Midland Highway Construction of deviation Lilydale Queens Road and through Dookie Hills. Warburton Highway. Murray Valley Highway Construction and sealing Mornington Peninsula Moorooduc Road to at Granya Gap. Freeway Dromana. Murray Valley Highway Duplication through Mulgrave Freeway Warrigal Road to Forster Echuca. Road. Murray Valley Highway Reconstruction west of Nepean Highway Widening between Wood Wood. Elsternwick and Murray Valley Highway Construction and sealing Moorabbin. from Lake Powell to Nepean Highway Construction o.t additional Bannerton. lanes between Station Northern Highway Reconstruction north and Street, Mordialloc and south of Pyalong. Progress Avenue, Omeo Highway Replacement of road Car rum. over rail bridge in Princes Highway West Duplication from Princes Bruthen. Freeway to Werribee. Omeo Highway Construction of Tullamarine Freeway Asphalt strengthening, approaches to new Brunswick Road to Bell bridge over Bundara .. Street interchange. River. Warburton Highway Construction of climbing Ouyen Highway General widening lane between Maroondah including realignment at Highway and Seville. the Boinka railway level Western Highway Asphalt strengthening in crossing. Sturt Street, Ballarat. Ovens Highway Replacement of bridge West Gate Freeway Graham Street to eetst of over Ovens River at Kings Way. Porepunkah. 4 Project Description of work Road maintenance charges A special conference of National Ministers of Princes Freeway Construction of bypass of Transport was held on 7th April, 1979 to deal with Drouin. the emergency associated with blockades by Princes Freeway Asphalt strengthening of transport operators. Arising from that conference, sections between decisions were made by States to abolish road Brooklyn and Lara. maintenance charges as from 1st July, 1979. Princes Highway East Extension of duplication In Victoria, the obligation to pay road maintenance east of Pakenham. charges was imposed under the Commercial Goods Princes Highway West Construction of deviation Vehicles Act. The gross revenue to the Board from at Cudgee. road maintenance charges in recent years under Princes Highway West Construction of deviation that Act has been as follows: at Bolwarra. Pyrenees Highway Reconstruction at Year $million Mooney's Gap. 1973/7 4 10.359 10.038 lt is estimated that an additional $28 million over and 1974/75 10.132 above budgeted expenditure could be expended on 1975/76 9.968 the projects listed above in financial year 1979/80 if 1976/77 9.818 additional funds were to be made available to the 1977/78 9.577 Board. 1978/79 Progress on a number of projects throughout the State which are under municipal control could also With the object of replacing the revenue lost through be accelerated if additional funds were available. the abolition of road maintenance charges in Victoria lt is estimated that an additional expenditure of the Business Franchise (Petroleum Products) Act $17 million could be expended on municipal projects 1979 was passed during the autumn session of in 1979/80. Parliament. That Act introduced a fuel franchise licensing system to apply to persons engaged in New borrowing powers petroleum wholesaling and retailing. Details of this legislation are described on page 52 of this report. During the year, the Country Roads