VTA slams Labor's Vic truck ban plan

The Victorian Transport Association has labelled the Victorian Labor Party's proposed Melbourne truck ban as "uninformed and short-sighted"

An extension of night curfews for heavy vehicles in Melbourne recently proposed by the state's Labor Party has been slammed by the Victorian Transport Association, the industry body claiming the measure would only intensify truck traffic elsewhere.

With the days counting down to the Victorian state election (November 29), the Victorian Labor Party has said that, if elected, it will ban trucks from a number of major arterials in Melbourne's north-eastern suburbs, including the Greensborough Highway and Rosanna Road.

The CEO of the VTA, Peter Anderson, said such a move would do nothing to solve the issue of heavy vehicles travelling near residential areas at night.

"It doesn’t make sense to announce night truck curfews on major transport routes such as Greensborough Highway and Rosanna Road without providing alternate routes," he said.

"These roads offer a direct route to the M80 ring road and through to the Hume Highway and Tullamarine Freeway, and these bans are simply a recipe for further conflict.

“If these proposed bans go ahead, logically freight vehicles of varying sizes will travel deeper into suburban lower-grade roads that are less equipped to take heavy vehicles. We’ll also see an increase in the number of freight vehicles travelling on these roads during daylight hours, simply adding to the congestion."

Mr Anderson said further investment in infrastructure was crucial to alleviating the city's transport issues.

"Without delivery of the 'missing link' between the M80 ring road and the Eastern Freeway congestion in and around Melbourne’s north-east will only worsen, particularly if heavy vehicles are banned from these roads during non-peak periods," he said.

The VTA has said that approaches by Mr Anderson to the Shadow Minister for Roads, Luke Donnellan, to discuss the issue have been met with "open and honest responses".

VTA slams Labor's Vic truck ban plan

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