A new pedestrian walking and cycling bridge in Docklands, Victoria has opened as part of the $10 billion West Gate Tunnel Project.
Inspired by the West Gate Bridge design and suspended from two 40-metre tall steel pylons by a series of cables, the 220-metre long bridge takes bike riders diagonally over busy Footscray Road – linking to the Docklands retail precinct, the Capital City trail, the Moonee Ponds Creek Trail and soon-to-be-completed elevated Veloway.
The bridge now provides a safe and dedicated elevated crossing over the busy Footscray Road and Waterfront Way intersection – linking the Capital City Trail to the Moonee Ponds Creek Trail, enhancing one of Melbourne’s key strategic cycling corridors.
Children and families will also have safer access to Docklands Primary School thanks to the new bridge.
It’s the next step in transforming the Footscray Road corridor, with the bridge forming a critical part of a bike connection to the 2.5-kilometre veloway, which opens later this year.
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The West Gate Tunnel Project will transform travel in Melbourne’s west – providing a much-needed second river crossing, cutting congestion and taking 9,000 trucks a day off local roads.
More than 14 kilometres of new and upgraded paths being delivered to make it safer and easier for more people to cycle.
The West Gate Tunnel Project will deliver a vital alternative to the West Gate Bridge, widening the West Gate Freeway from 8 to 12 lanes and taking 9000 trucks a day off local roads.
When the West Gate Tunnel Project opens by end 2025, the twin tunnels will serve as a much-needed alternative to the West Gate Bridge.
Using the newly expanded and strengthened West Gate Freeway and the twin tunnels, trucks will now have a direct access to the Port of Melbourne to and from the west, resulting in less trucks on inner west roads.
The widening of the Freeway will also provide motorists with a clear run to the West Gate Bridge from the M80 interchange via express lanes.
Gabrielle Williams, Minister for Transport Infrastructure said the new bridge over Footscray Road is a game-changer.
“It is a big step towards transforming the corridor into an elevated cycling super-highway between the city and the west,” said Williams.
For more information, visit: bigbuild.vic.gov.au/