The seven-month long wait is finally over with Princes Freeway at Morwell opening last week
September, 2011
The long-awaited Princes Freeway at Morwell is now open following the completion of an extensive remedial works program.
Victorian Deputy Premier and Minister for Police and Emergency Services Peter Ryan says the phased opening, which will gradually allow traffic back onto the closed section of the freeway, came in time for the school holidays last week.
VicRoads has completed all the works necessary to enable the conditional re-opening of the freeway, he adds.
The freeway has been closed since February 10 this year following constant heavy rain which led to the creation of sink holes and ground movement in the area.
“These repair efforts are a culmination of months work by the Coalition Government, Victoria Police and the Latrobe City Council in ensuring the freeway is in a safe condition for all road users,” Ryan says.
“All agencies and technical experts have worked tirelessly to develop the best possible solution to enable the freeway to reopen, with constant monitoring and testing of land movement in addition to the drilling of 50 horizontal drains at the base of the Hazelwood mine area.”
Remediation works have included lining of the centre median strips, grout injections into soft spot areas, a traffic management plan to respond to any future movement in the area and two emergency cross-over points.