After the painful debacle of property acquisitions during the rushed East West Link fiasco, Daniel Andrews​ must ensure all Melbourne residents are correctly informed with any Metro Rail process that involves their homes, properties, project boundaries and also ensure to acquire property at selling price, not the market price.

Any potential situation where people could be forced out of their suburbs and not able to buy back in nearby must be totally avoided.

The Melbourne Metro tunnel is very different from the East-West Link. On the plus side, the apertures are smaller and locals won’t be bathed in carcinogenic diesel pollution. The trains are not elevated onto flyovers and parks are not impacted.

While YCAT supports the metro project, on the down side, noise will be a major impact as will construction. Deficiencies in the way the previous government handled forced acquisitions should be addressed. Even after the east-west link has been abandoned, property values near the tunnel portals remain depressed.

YCAT is also concerned for residents facing the prospect of a new truck flyover on a reserve in Hyde Street, see Petitioning Scott Charlton, CEO of Transurban, Lindsay Maxsted, Chair and non-executive Director of Transurban, Daniel Andrews, Victorian Premier: The amended Transurban West Gate Distributor proposal puts profits in front of people

The amended West Gate Distributor proposal is not a solution to the problem of trucks on the roads in the Inner West of Melbourne.

This is a profit-driven plan that shifts the issue rather than solves it – at the expense of hundreds of residents who live within very close vicinity of the proposed tunnel entrance, at the expense of residents who live above the proposed tunnel pathway and at the expense of the entire communities of Yarraville, Spotswood and surrounding areas who will lose significant green space if this proposal goes ahead. We live in increasingly dense areas that are already impacted by truck noise, emissions and limited green space. The amended proposal does nothing to solve these issues for the people of the Inner West.

Media Release: Premier of Victoria The Hon. Daniel Andrews MP: Consultation On Potential Impacts Of Melbourne Metro Begins (22 September 2015)

Engagement with local residents who may be affected by the construction of Melbourne’s new underground rail network will begin this week.

Melbourne Metro Rail Authority has sent letters to 21,000 residents and businesses along the alignment of the new nine-kilometre, twin rail tunnels being built as part of the $9-$11 billion project.

The letter invites locals to come to information sessions and find out more about where the tunnel will go, how it may be built, and the planning process that will be undertaken. Continue Reading…