After 244 AFL games, footy star Jarrad Waite has joined a new team delivering safer and more reliable travel with Stage 1 of the Mickleham Road Upgrade.
The former leading goalkicker at Carlton and North Melbourne is now kicking goals in his construction role helping the project build extra lanes and new and upgraded intersections in Greenvale.
With his new teammates, Mr Waite’s at the front line of the construction effort. He works on-site to help deliver Stage 1 of the upgrade, one of the Big Build’s vital road projects in northern Melbourne.
Mr Waite made the transition to construction after finishing his glittering AFL career at the end of the 2018 season.
The number 46 pick in the 2001 draft played 184 games for the Blues and 60 with the Kangaroos after switching clubs ahead of the 2015 season.
He topped Carlton’s goal kicking in 2014 and North’s in 2015 for a total 244 majors across 16 years at footy’s highest level.
Along the way, he won an AFL Rising Star nomination and earned a place in Victoria’s representative side.
Now juggling work on the Mickleham Road Upgrade with raising a young family, he also finds time to coach hometown team Benalla Saints in the Goulburn Valley Football League.
Mr Waite reflects the diversity of the project team, which features people from all types of careers and cultural backgrounds.
He encourages anyone thinking about construction as a career path to follow their dream, citing the opportunities available and the camaraderie he enjoys with his workmates.
Mr Waite is an employee of BMD Group, the construction partner helping Major Road Projects Victoria deliver the Mickleham Road Upgrade – Stage 1.
The project is adding new lanes in each direction on Mickleham Road between Somerton Road and Dellamore Boulevard to improve safety and ease congestion for the 25,000 drivers who use the road daily.
Stage 1 will replace the roundabout at Somerton and Mickleham roads with a new traffic light intersection, including priority bus lanes, to better manage traffic flow.
The project has also built a new traffic light intersection at Aitken College, upgraded key intersections - with more scheduled later this year - and built new sections of shared walking and cycling path to improve connectivity on Mickleham Road.
Planning and development work is underway to inform the potential Mickleham Road Upgrade - Stage 2, between Dellamore Boulevard and Craigieburn Road.
More information about the project is available on our Mickleham Road Upgrade – Stage 1 project page.