Protection work for the Great Ocean Road

It has been a century since construction first began on the Great Ocean road, now new works have begun for its protection.

This work comes as part of the Victorian Government’s $53 million investment to protect the Great Ocean Road.

Engineers and road workers have begun construction work to improve the geotechnical resilience of the tourist route.

Minister for Roads Jaala Pulford said the government are taking action to protect and improve the road for the communities that rely on it every day and the millions of people who visit this beautiful region every year.

Drone surveying has allowed geotechnical engineers to model the terrain above and below the road.

Steep cliff faces, historical landslip sites and areas previously inaccessible to surveyors have been examined.

Rock armour walls will be constructed beneath the road and along the foreshore to help protect the road from the impacts of coastal erosion.

High-tech weather stations are also providing rainfall and soil moisture data to help engineers measure the impacts of these factors on the cliff faces and below the road.

Rock netting, soil nailing and erosion control matting are also being implemented to stabilise embankments and prevent loose rock fall.

Near Cumberland River, workers are removing rock from the cliff face above the road, abseiling down to dislodge rocks with drilling equipment and expanding grout so they can fall safely behind an innovative container-wall barrier below.