Plans to take the Outer Circle Rail Trail over a new bridge at Toorak Road in Camberwell have been dropped due to the cost and complexity of construction.
Instead, the option of new traffic signals at road level will be pursued.
The Outer Circle trail, also known as the Anniversary Trail, follows the Alamein Line train corridor from East Camberwell to Gardiners Creek in Ashburton.
The route is a designated Strategic Cycling Corridor but has always been compromised by the unsatisfactory arrangements for the crossing of Toorak Road.
Initiatives by the City of Boroondara, the state government and Bicycle Network to resolve the problem date back more than 15 years.
In 2008, the council proposed the erection of a shared path bridge over Toorak Road immediately adjacent to the existing rail bridge.
Costings were initially around $4 milion, which grew to $8 million when the Liberal coalition went to the election in 2022 with a promise of funding to build it.
Now, following a three-year development process the cost is estimated at closer to $30 million. And, as there is a live train line above a live tram line below the potential construction location, the bridge could not be built without shutting down significant public transport assets for a period.
Other factors considered by Transport Victoria included "safety, environmental and parking impacts and the wider community benefit", a spokesperson told Bicycle Network.
Now, the plan is to create a new path on the east side of the railway line back towards Hartwell Station, which will remove the need for the existing pedestrian crossing of the train line, and connect to a signalised crossing of Toorak Road under the existing rail bridge.
The lights would synchronise with the lights at Summerhill Road, ensuring pedestrians and bike riders have frequent opportunities to cross.
The proposed crossing option includes safety and amenity improvements at key locations along the Anniversary Trail both north and south of Toorak Road.
Transport Victoria says it will continue with designs for the signal crossing solution and will consider seeking delivery funding as part of a future business case.
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