JULY 2015 Palmers Road Corridor (Western Freeway to Calder Freeway) Environment Effects Statement Summary Brochure keeping victorians connected Figure 1 Palmers Road Corridor (Western Freeway to Calder Freeway) 1 Summary Brochure Purpose of EES report Project approvals On 13 November 2009, the Victorian Minister for Planning The Project requires approval under the Commonwealth determined under the Environment Effects Act 1978 Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation that an Environment Effects Statement (EES) needed to Act 1999, amendments to the Brimbank Planning be prepared by VicRoads for the Palmers Road Corridor Scheme (Amendment 157) and Melton Planning Scheme Project - Western Freeway to Calder Freeway (‘the (Amendment C143) under the Planning and Environment Project’). The purpose of the EES is to provide a detailed Act 1987 and an approved Cultural Heritage Management description of the Project and to investigate its potential Plan (CHMP) under the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006. effects on the environment, to inform the public and Approvals under other legislation for components of the stakeholders and then to enable an assessment of the project are also required and outlined in the EES report. Project by the Minister for Planning. The draft planning scheme amendments (PSAs) and The upgrade of the Palmers Road Corridor has been draft CHMP are being exhibited concurrently with the identified as a long term Project to be implemented in EES and public comments are sought on the PSAs as stages. The focus of this EES is on the assessment of well as the EES during the exhibition period. The PSAs environmental effects of the Palmers Road Corridor include application of a Public Acquisition Overlay to between the Western Freeway and the Calder Freeway. land that needs to be compulsorily acquired for the Project, and provide an exemption from all planning Robinsons Road, Westwood Drive and Calder Park Drive permit requirements for the Project (subject to the Project are local roads currently under the management of meeting any other recommendations of the Minister’s the Cities of Brimbank and Melton. The existing roads assessment of the project’s environmental effects). are two-lane undivided roads with no connection at Kororoit Creek. Consequently, there is a need to connect A CHMP has been developed for the Project, and will Westwood Drive and upgrade the roads in the future to a be submitted to the Registered Aboriginal Party and the six lane arterial to provide the additional capacity for these Office of Aboriginal Affairs for evaluation and approval roads to function as arterial roads. following the EES process. The Project requires approval under the EPBC Act Project rationale due to the potential to impact on matters of national The aim of the Project is to provide a high standard environmental significance. The Federal Minister for the north-south transport link in Melbourne’s west. The Environment will make a decision under the EPBC Act on western suburbs of Melbourne are experiencing significant the Project and this assessment will be based on separate growth in residential development and employment. This documentation to the EES expansion places pressure on the existing road networks and must be supported by suitable transport infrastructure. Project options The Project would provide a high level of accessibility In deciding that an EES was required for the Project in in these areas, and will assist in the reduction of traffic 2009, the Minister for Planning required that alternative through local streets and residential areas. routes be considered in a preliminary report. The following alternatives have been considered as part of this EES: The Project would provide a link between the Western Freeway, Western Highway, Melton Highway and Calder Gourlay Road Corridor to the west • Freeway. The Palmers Road Corridor is to be progressively Kings Road Corridor to the east upgraded to an ultimate six-lane divided carriageway • Palmers Road Corridor arterial road to deliver significant road safety, capacity • and efficiency benefits in response to the projected traffic Corridors further east or west of the three corridors were volumes in a rapidly growing area in Melbourne’s west. not considered as any primary arterial developed further afield would not serve this area effectively and would The Project is supported by Plan Melbourne (Victorian result in additional congestion on the three corridors. Government, 2014), Western Melbourne Transport Strategy (Lead West, Western Transport Alliance, AECOM, The Kings Road and Gourlay Road Corridors are not 2012), Growth Corridor Plans Managing Melbourne’s suitable alternatives. This is due to constraints such as Growth (Victorian Government, 2012), Growth Area the limited width of the existing road reserve, the number Framework Plans: Melton – Caroline Springs (Victorian of friction points at intersections with local streets, the Government, 2006), Melton East Strategy Plan (Shire of location of activity centres, existing levels of local traffic Melton, 1997) and the Outer Western Suburbs Transport and designation as part of the Principal Public Transport Study (Victorian Government, 2001). Network (PPTN). 2 The Palmers Road Corridor is a core element of the A Technical Reference Group (TRG) was established with Growth Corridor Plan for Melbourne’s west. The land use Government stakeholders and other key agencies with pattern has been designed so the Palmers Road Corridor meetings held in 2013 and 2014. The purpose of the TRG can accommodate a six lane primary north-south arterial, was to obtain specialist technical input on any issues, to with almost no direct property access. review and provide advice on the consultant’s reports, provide updates in relation to policy changes and identify Transport modelling shows a road connection across approval/permit requirements. Kororoit Creek is critical to the arterial road network. Modelling also shows that at two and four lanes the Two community information days were held in June 2013 Palmers Road Corridor will not meet the demand in the to provide an opportunity for the community, including future and the six lane option provides a level of service those directly affected along the corridor, to ask questions, with significantly less congestion, especially in the peak provide input to the EES and PSA processes and provide periods. With six lanes the Palmers Road Corridor will feedback on the route. become the major north south route located between the The community has generally been supportive of the adjacent Outer Metropolitan Ring Road and the Western Project. Key issues raised by the community included Ring Road. impacts on amenity as a result of noise, construction dust and increased traffic, impacts on access and pedestrian Project description safety and concerns regarding the impact on the value of homes in the area. Key design changes have occurred as a The Project Area, for the purposes of the EES is shown result of community and stakeholder consultation. on figure 1. The Project involves reserving a 16 kilometre long and 40-60 metres wide corridor for the future development of a continuous north south arterial road from the Western Freeway to the Calder Freeway. This Table 1 - Summary of rating scale corresponds with and connects the corridors of existing local roads: Robinsons Road, Westwood Drive and Calder Rating Description Park Drive. Very Well Negligible adverse effects The Project will ultimately involve construction of a six- Applicable standards met lane divided road (i.e. three-lanes in each direction), with Strong policy compliance off-road shared bicycle and pedestrian facilities on both Best practice (incl. mitigation measures) sides of the road. Two existing railway crossings would be removed, one at the Melbourne-Bendigo rail line crossing Well Minor adverse effects with Calder Park Drive and another at the Melbourne- Minor exceedances at small number of Ballarat rail line with Robinsons Road. Two bridges would locations be constructed over Kororoit Creek and it is also proposed Good policy compliance to construct a raised interchange where the route Improved practice (incl. mitigation connects with the Calder Freeway in the north. measures) The upgrade of the Palmers Road Corridor has been Neutral Moderate adverse effects identified as a long term Project to be implemented in Minor exceedances at a large number of stages, with the initial Kororoit Creek bridge and Calder locations Freeway interchange planned to occur in the short term. Partial policy compliance As the ultimate development is not proposed until 2046, Standard practice (incl. mitigation minor changes to the alignment may occur during the measures) detailed design stage. However, the level of detail in the existing design is considered sufficient for an assessment Poor Moderate-major adverse effects of potential project impacts. Major exceedances at a small number of locations Consultation Policy non-compliance Consultation with the community has been an integral Poor practice (incl. mitigation measures) part of the planning investigations. VicRoads has Very Poor Major adverse effects undertaken consultation with relevant stakeholders, Major exceedances at a large number of potentially affected parties, the community and locations organisations in order to identify and respond to their Major policy non-compliance concerns. Very poor practice (incl. mitigation In 2013, a Consultation Plan was prepared for the EES and measures)