I’ve never had the chance to walk through a brand new road tunnel before. True, I’ve only been writing car and driving news for a hot sec, but covering planning and infrastructure was a big part of my job as a property journalist and editor.
So when the chance to stomp the new pavement under the West Gate Tunnel came up, I jumped at it.
I knew why I was keen to see the yet-to-be opened tunnel, but I was surprised to see how many others were excited to be one of the first to walk through.
More than 50,000 people made their way to Yarraville Gardens in Melbourne’s west on Sunday – and not even the fickle spring weather could dampen the mood.
“We just thought it was kind of a once in a lifetime opportunity to walk through a tunnel before it was open,” Werribee resident Amy Janovski told Drive.
She and her husband Jesse made the trip with their two children – the youngest just 15 weeks' old and strapped to Amy in a carrier as she walked.
The last time a tunnel opened in Melbourne was almost 20 years ago – the twin Mullum Mullum and Melba tunnels on the EastLink. At the time, 100,000 people walked through prior to the opening of the freeway.
So what is it that makes the experience of walking through a tunnel designed for cars enticing? For one, it’s being able to notice details you would completely miss when travelling at up to 80km/h.
The towering, entry arch to the tunnel is striking from afar, but up close you notice it's made not from just steel, but an ashy-brown hardwood. The design is a reference to the fishing nets the traditional owners of the land – the Wurundjeri people – would use.
It’s not just the artistic elements, but also the sheer scale of the project and what it will mean for the day-to-day travels of the city’s residents.
For the project’s deputy director of traffic and network planning Paul Smith, that’s the most important part.
“You like to see the outcome of your work at the end of it all, and it's good to see 50,000 people coming through today and really enjoying themselves and getting a taste before the whole thing opens up,” he said as he walked through with his family.
“It will provide a legacy for the rest of the state for 100 years to come.”
Paul’s 22-year-old daughter Georgia has spent half her life hearing about the project, but even she was awestruck at the result.
“It's just interesting to see what he's been actually doing every time he's been going into work,” she said. “It’s amazing.”
Once open, the tunnel is said to save people about 20 minutes on their drive from the west to the city.
The $10.2 billion project was meant to be completed three years ago, and the energy among the crowd – though celebratory – was also one of relief.
“It's going to make so many people's commutes and drives so much easier,” Jesse Janovski said.
Given Melbourne’s outer west is one of the fastest-growing areas in the country in terms of population, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the tunnel’s opening can’t come soon enough.
The tunnel’s opening date is not confirmed, but is expected to be in the weeks after the state’s Metro Tunnel section of the Suburban Rail Loop opens on November 30.
Jemimah is Drive's Consumer Editor. She has more than a decade of editorial experience and has previously worked in property and lifestyle journalism for Domain, The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald and REA Group, among many other publications.
