Suburban Rail Loop East (SRL East) will connect our growing health, education, retail and employment precincts in Melbourne’s east and south east between Cheltenham and Box Hill.

The 26km SRL East corridor will be built as a standalone line that is integrated with the existing public transport network.

A high-tech fleet of energy efficient trains will run on the line, stopping at the six new underground stations in Cheltenham, Clayton, Monash, Glen Waverley, Burwood and Box Hill.

As with all major infrastructure projects, surrounding communities may experience some impacts, including traffic and transport disruptions, during construction.

Construction activities will be carefully managed to minimise traffic and transport disruptions to ensure people can still get where they need to go on our road and public transport networks.

Traffic and transport changes

Building the new stations, rail tunnels and supporting infrastructure will prompt a range of permanent and temporary traffic changes in local areas. These changes may also result in temporary disruptions to bus and tram services.

During construction there will be additional traffic from workers accessing construction sites and trucks delivering materials and equipment.

In some areas, construction works and changes to allow for the new Suburban Rail Loop stations will result in the temporary and permanent loss of car parking spaces.

SRL East will significantly enhance pedestrian and cycling connections around the station areas. To facilitate these enhancements, temporary closures and diversions may be required during construction.

Construction transport management plans

Keeping the transport network moving during construction will require site-specific construction transport management plans to minimise impacts.

These plans will apply to each station precinct and around the stabling facility and other supporting infrastructure to manage traffic, car parking and pedestrian and cycling changes during construction. They will also detail designated truck routes and emergency access arrangements.

Construction vehicle traffic

Trucks will remove excavated soil and rock from tunnelling activities, as well as deliver building materials and equipment to construction sites.

Excavated spoil will be transported along designated haulage routes that direct trucks to the freeway and arterial road network, minimising the impact on local traffic and local roads wherever possible.

Road diversions and closures

Traffic management will be in place to manage road diversions and closures. Measures could include reduced speed limits, signage and notifications that give advance notice of works and suggest alternative routes.

Temporary and permanent road closures will be required in some areas. Changes to traffic conditions will be staged to reduce impacts on road and public transport users.

Car parking and access to properties

Measures to manage changed parking conditions in local areas will include replacement parking and providing suitable alternate routes for vehicles to maintain connectivity to car parks and properties.

Public transport disruptions

Construction methods and staging will reduce impacts on public transport users. However, there may still be some temporary disruptions and diversions to bus and tram services around construction sites.

The project will work with the Department of Transport to minimise disruption to passengers and any changes to services will be communicated ahead of the scheduled changes.

Cycling and pedestrian safety

As much as possible most pedestrian and cycling paths will remain open during construction, with some temporary closures and diversions required in identified locations.

Any impacts to cycling routes will be communicated well in advance, with detours or temporary arrangements in place that are clearly signposted.

Managing impacts

A range of measures will be used to manage and minimise disruption, as has been done successfully on other recent major transport projects in Melbourne. These measures will form the basis of recommended Environmental Performance Requirements (EPRs) as part of the Environment Effects Statement (EES) for SRL East.