The session started with an Acknowledgement of Country to pay respect to the Traditional Owners of the country around Deer Park, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people.

Construction progress and the upcoming program were outlined.

• Recent progress lifting two steel bridges into place over Mt Derrimut Road, installing ballast, sleepers, rail tracks and decorative glazing on the Platform 1 lift.
• Video showing the steel bridges being lifted into place and drone footage of the new Deer Park Station construction.
• Upcoming 24/7 works while the rail line is closed from Monday 10 April to Sunday 23 April.
• During this time, we will remove the boom gates at Mt Derrimut Road, demolish the old station, lay tracks on the approaches to the new rail bridge, relocate a water main and connect power to the new station.
• Train replacement services during the rail line closure were also discussed.

Once the level crossing has been removed our crews will rebuild the intersection of Mt Derrimut, Station and Tilburn roads. The roads will close from Monday 1 May to Friday 2 June, while we:

• remove the rail tracks from the road and level out the area
• build a short section of dedicated bus lane on Mt Derrimut Road
• update traffic signals and road line markings
• build additional entrance/exit points for the bus interchange and car park
• install new asphalt, pavements, drainage, kerbs and safety barriers.

The team shared maps showing the road detours that will be in place during this time.

An overview of some recent community engagement activities followed.

• Thank you to the community members who joined us on the night the two steel bridges were lifted into place.
• Pop-ups where we shared information with train passengers ahead of the rail closure in April.
• An overview of the various ways we have kept the community up to date with travel changes during the April rail closure and upcoming works. These include television, newspaper and online advertising, social media posts, web news, email and SMS updates.

Finally, the team answered questions from participants regarding the new bus interchange, rail bridge architectural screens and shared use paths in the area.

The next online project update will take place in June.