Community group says curfews are a good start, but it’s still looking for a permanent solution to trucks in residential areas.
Leaders of The Maribyrnong Truck Action Group (MTAG) have celebrated the introduction of truck curfews overnight and during school drop-off and pick up times in two residential west Melbourne streets.
The new curfews apply on Moore Street, Footscray and on Sommerville Road in Yarraville and Kingsville.
“This will be hugely beneficial for the residents of Moore Street and surrounds who have had to live with a 400 per cent increase in night-time truck traffic in recent years,” one local says.
The curfew was negotiated with representatives of MTAG, the Victorian Transport Association (VTA), the Maribyrnong City Council and VicRoads.
MTAG president Samantha McArthur says each group should be commended for their willingness to find a compromise solution to the issue of truck noise and safety.
“We are really glad to be working with the VTA and these curfews have only been made possible by their willingness to work with residents to reach a compromise,” she says.
Still, McArthur says MTAG still has more it wants to achieve.
“It’s important to understand that these curfews are not a solution to the problem,” she says.
“Our longer-term aims are actually very similar [to those of the VTA]: we want appropriate infrastructure built for truck traffic accessing the port.”
The curfews were introduced to coincide with the beginning of the new school year.
Under the restrictions, heavy vehicles cannot access Moore Street between 8pm and 6am weeknights, and over the weekend from 1pm on Saturdays until 6am on Mondays.
The existing curfew on Somerville Road has been extended to include school drop-off and pick up times. Trucks are also banned from using Somerville Road between 8am and 9.30am, and from 2.30pm to 4pm Monday to Friday.