Presented by Robert Clark MP		www.robertclark.net

Tullamarine–Eastern Freeways link mooted

The Premier, Mr Kennett, has committed the State Government to investigating options to connect the Eastern and Tullamarine Freeways to alleviate traffic snarls at the city end of the Eastern Freeway.

Mr Kennett assured there would never be a toll on the Eastern Freeway and that the Hoddle St exit would be retained and upgraded to further alleviate congestion.

"Being caught in a traffic bottleneck from Hoddle Street to Burke Road will become a daily occurrence for the hundreds of thousands of motorists travelling to the city from the Eastern suburbs unless the link is built," he said

The project of linking the Eastern and Tullamarine Freeways has an anticipated cost of approximately $700 million and will require the Government to look at all funding options including private sector involvement.

"Publicly funding the entire project would force Government to use all of the three-cents-a-litre Better Roads Fund for each of four years, which would mean that no new roads or road upgrades could be undertaken anywhere else in the State during that period."

(News Release, Office of the Premier, May 6, 1999)