Melton City Council has welcomed today's announcement by the Australian Government to invest $1 billion to upgrade the Western Highway, between Melton and Caroline Springs.
City of Melton Mayor, Cr Steve Abboushi joined Federal Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Catherine King, State Minister for Public and Active Transport Gabrielle Williams, and Local State and Federal Members in Cobblebank for the announcement today.
While details of the upgrades are to be confirmed, funding will go towards improving capacity and safety and is tipped to include extra lanes and upgrades to key interchanges.
The Victorian Government will deliver the upgrades, which will be based on the recommendations of the recently completed Western Highway business case.
City of Melton Mayor, Cr Steve Abboushi said the announcement was fantastic news for the community.
"On behalf of Melton City Council, I would like to thank the Albanese Government for this funding, which will transform this critical national transport route.
"We are delighted with today's announcement. The Western Highway upgrade has been a top priority for Council and the community, and this funding will deliver much-needed upgrades so our residents can get to and from work safely and spend more time with their families.
"This funding demonstrates that working in partnership across all levels of government can lead to positive outcomes for our fast-growing community.
"We look forward to continuing to work with both levels of government to understand the specific details of this investment and timelines for delivery."
Over 86,000 vehicles, including more than 5400 trucks are estimated to travel along the Western Highway between Melton and Caroline Springs each day and traffic modelling projects that this will increase to over 110,000 vehicles.
