March against cross-city road link

by Brad Ryan

A GROUP of West Footscray residents have vowed to march against a proposed cross-city roadway as debate on the project intensifies.

The No Freeway 4 West Footscray group - headed by local mothers Clare O’Sullivan, Lucy Liga and Anne Parsons - is planning to lead a protest march in October.

Ms O’Sullivan said residents had been kept in the dark about the planned roadway and its potential route through West Footscray.

She said the State Government was deliberately stifling debate over the “ugly, noisy and dirty” proposal, contained in the high-level Eddington transport report.

The report’s recommendations are being considered by the Government, and Ms O’Sullivan said residents should be consulted before decisions were made.

A community meeting last week attracted more than 200 people.

But Transport Minister Lynne Kosky said the Government had been consulting widely.

She said more than 2300 public submissions were being considered and eight regional and suburban local forums were held last month.

But those forums were by invitation only.

Ms Kosky also last week accused Western Metropolitan state Greens MP Colleen Hartland of opposing new public transport for the West, after Ms Hartland spoke against the roadway proposal.

“If Colleen had her way the western suburbs would not see any new public transport or roads projects to increase capacity and access,” Ms Kosky said.

Ms Hartland has a history of advocacy for public transport in the West and has been a vocal proponent of train extensions to Bacchus Marsh, Wyndham Vale and Tarneit.

“What I utterly oppose are the new road tunnels, elevated roads and road widenings that will rip through the suburbs of the inner west,” Ms Hartland said.

“Ms Kosky is the Public Transport Minister. Hasn’t she got something better to do than attack people who campaign for better public transport?”

Read the original article from the Maribyrnong Leader.

We understand the final details of October's event are being finalised. We'll let you know as soon as there's more information.