Background
In May 2006 the Victorian Government announced that as part of its "Meeting Our Transport Challenges" action plan, it had appointed Eddington–then reviewing Britain's transport system for the Blair Government–to head an independent investigation into the best transport solutions for connecting Melbourne's eastern and western suburbs. The government's brief noted that the majority of east-west traffic in the city was carried on just two links, the Monash andFindings
Eddington's study noted that Melbourne's strong economic and population growth would result in a 30 percent increase in demand for travel, by both public transport and private motor vehicles, by 2033. There would also be a 50 percent growth in freight being moved around Melbourne and to and from the city's ports and airports by 2020. He said it was vital that there were higher levels of investment in public transport as well as the development of urban areas that were conducive to walking and cycling. But he added: "The evidence is clear that the number of trips made by car in Melbourne will increase by a substantial amount for the foreseeable future–and the city’s road network must be able to cope with this increasing demand in an efficient and sustainable manner." He said any transport proposals arising from the study had to make a major contribution to: *Improving opportunities in Melbourne's west and supporting the strong population growth taking place there. He said the city had a significant east-west divide that led to reduced opportunities for jobs and business growth in the west. *Supporting the growth and consolidation of Melbourne's "knowledge centre" aroundSummary of recommendations
The proposal totaled over A$18 billion in costs. The report contained 20 recommendations including: *Planning work should begin for a staged construction of a new 17 km Melbourne Metro rail tunnel to link western and south-eastern suburbs and provide a major increase to the rail network. *An early start should be made on building a new rail connection fromImplementation
The Brumby government released its final decisions in theReferences
External links
Originally published, but no longer available at