For the past six months, the massive crane soaring above Footscray Road has been steadily building the new elevated road that will link the future twin tunnels in the west with new connections to Dynon Road, Footscray Road and CityLink in the east.
Since late 2021, the massive crane (also known as the launching gantry) has been lifting huge segments of concrete weighing between 60 and 100 tones and stitching them together to build the westbound and eastbound carriageways.
More than 70 per cent of the elevated road section above Footscray Road is now complete. Our crews will now enter the final stages of building the new city connections on the eastbound carriageway.
These connections will give drivers from Melbourne’s west more route choices to CityLink, inner northern suburbs and the city.
Closure dates
Citybound carriageway
To build these city connections, the Footscray Road citybound carriageway between Dock Link Road and Appleton Dock Road will be closed:
- 24/7 from 8pm, Saturday 27 May to 5am Friday, 16 June 2023
Starting from Sunday 28 May, the westbound carriageway will remain open during the citybound closure.
Motorists should detour via Dynon Road. Signage and lane markings will be in place to guide drivers.
Westbound carriageway
When the eastbound carriageway closes, pedestrians and cyclists travelling westbound along the path will be diverted to travel on the leftmost lane of Footscray Road, after passing Appleton Dock Road. This path will travel under the elevated road, before joining back up to the original shared path at the Dock Link Road intersection.
Concrete barriers will be in place to separate path users from road traffic. There will also be lighting to illuminate the path.
For drivers travelling along Footscray Road westbound, after passing Appleton Dock Road
Footscray Road will be reduced from three to two lanes, and travel under the elevated road.
There will be no left and right turns allowed at the Dock Link Road /Footscray Road intersection.
Overnight closure in both directions on Saturday 27 May
To set this arrangement up, Footscray Road westbound carriageway will be closed overnight between Dock Link Road and Appleton Dock Road from 8pm Saturday 27 May from 8pm to 7am.
For more information as well as maps on detour routes, please visit our dedicated Winter works page.
Check before you travel – stay on top with the latest information by:
- visiting Big Build Disruption
- Contact us 24/7 at 1800 105 105.
Faster and safer travel
When finished, the new elevated road will allow for faster and safer travel between the tunnels and CityLink, Dynon Road, Footscray Road and Wurundjeri Way by joining to new bridges over the Maribyrnong River, providing a vital second river crossing for drivers.
Learn more
- Understand new route choices from the west to the nortnern suburbs and the airport
- See how we'll create a CBD bypass connecting to Dynon Road by extending Wurundjeri Way
- Find out about the new elevated road above Footscray Road
- Learn about the new bridge over the Maribyrnong River.