Fusion Party AustraliaWe supported the Mickleham Road upgrade. Here's why, and what we demanded in return.
Outer-suburban gridlock is real, and we're not going to pretend otherwise. Growing communities need roads that function.
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It's the same fight we're having over the Ferris Road overpass in Melton, a daily bottleneck that shouldn't still be a bottleneck.
So yes, Stage 2 of the Mickleham Road upgrade has our support.
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But we've lodged a conditional submission with Big Build Roads, because road widening on its own is just a delayed version of the same problem. Wider roads fill with more cars It's what the data consistently shows, not our opinion.
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If we widen without planning for what comes next, we're back here in fifteen years having the same conversation.
Our submission puts two non-negotiables on the record:
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Protect future transit space.
The outer lanes need to be explicitly reserved so they can be converted into dedicated bus priority corridors when the network catches up. Don't build something you'll have to rip apart in a decade.
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Make the active transport infrastructure real.
Walking and cycling paths that sit beside six lanes of high-speed traffic without physical separation aren't safe infrastructure. Build the separation properly or don't count it as a win.
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The bigger picture here is planning policy. Road upgrades need to come paired with mixed-use zoning and high-frequency local bus networks so that driving is something people choose, not something they're forced into because there's no other option.
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That's the shift we're pushing for.
Full submission at fusionparty.org.au/mickleham_road_upgrade
#MicklehamRoad #Greenvale #Craigieburn #UrbanPlanning #PublicTransport #BigBuild #FusionParty
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