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Summary of document

North East Link is a proposed new freeway link between the M80 and the Eastern Freeway that would generate improvements in transport network efficiency in Melbourne’s north-east and reduce congestion on arterial road through residential areas. In addition, it would provide greater resilience and redundancy in the transport network.

A significant benefit of the project will be the contribution to a more liveable Melbourne, particularly by removing a significant volume of heavy vehicle movements from residential streets in the north-east.

A project of this scale does have the potential for significant environmental, social and economic impacts. These will occur both in the construction and operational phase, and unavoidable adverse effects would need to be managed in accordance with Victorian legislation.

The purpose of this document is to inform the Minister for Planning in his consideration of whether to declare North East Link (‘the project’) as “public works” under Section 3 of the Environment Effects Act 1978 (EE Act).

This document is based on the State’s concept design which is the basis for the project Business case.

The concept design will undergo further development and assessment in consultation with relevant stakeholders and the community to develop a reference design for the project to be used for the purposes of more detailed assessment and procurement. This process may involve assessment of variations to certain elements of the reference design to facilitate innovation from the private sector that will bid on the delivery of the project. These variations could include things such as the length of the tunnel, the location of tunnel portals and ventilation structures, or the location and design of elevated and surface road connections.

This document provides a preliminary screening analysis of the potential environmental, social and economic effects of the project. The outcomes of this analysis are set out in Section 6. The analysis indicates that the project is capable of having a significant effect on the natural, physical and social environment within and adjacent to the project boundary.

For that reason, the preparation of an Environment Effects Statement (EES) under the provisions of the EE Act may be warranted. In the event that the Minister does declare the project to be “public works” the secondary purpose of this document is to assist the Minister in determining the procedures and requirements that are to apply to an EES for the works.