No Wurundjeri Way sound barrier

“Terrible resonance.” That’s how West Melbourne residents describe the noise from countless heavy freight trains rumbling by their front doors every day. 

Now, the proposed lack of a sound barrier around the Wurundjeri Way Extension section of the West Gate Tunnel Project (WGTP) threatens to disturb their peace even further.

As it stands, the WGTP has no plan to install a noise barrier along part of the project known as Wurundjeri Way, an elevated road around 100 metres away from Railway Place between Dynon Rd and Dynon St where it will join the current Wurundjeri Way.

 North West City News understands the WGTP factored in background noise from local roads and the nearby rail in its modelling, with the additional project forecasted not to exceed the 63-decibel threshold required for installing a sound barrier. But Railway Place residents are still concerned about the cumulative noise from regional rail link trains, metro trains and the vibration and resonance from the heavy freight trains passing through the E-Gate.

Railway Place resident Janet Graham told North West City News that she already put up with “terrible resonance” from the trains running about 14 metres from her front door.

“You can be sitting in your house and you get these vibrations,” she said.

“My bookshelves tend to rattle, but more importantly, it’s just a sort of vibration that goes through your head.”

Ms Graham said the WGTP seemed to be ignoring the real possibility Railway Place residents may be subjected to even more noise on top of the 250-odd trains passing by their houses each weekday.

Another nearby resident Anthony McKee said while a lot of modelling for the Wurundjeri Way Extension had already been done on the overall length of the project, it did not consider the fact there are many surrounding high-rise apartments and offices which may be impacted by the noise.

According to a letter from City of Melbourne state infrastructure director Rob Moore, directed to Ms Graham in October last year, noise monitoring along Railway Place carried out for the WGTP environmental effects statement in June 2016 showed existing noise levels of 60 decibels.

Further noise modelling carried out for the project predicted “2031 with project” noise levels of just 63 decibels along Railway Place without noise barriers.

“However, the EES doesn’t state what volume of vehicles or proportion of vehicles or proportion of trucks were used as inputs to the noise model, nor why the predicted noise level was presented as a rounded whole number but the change in noise level was presented to one decimal place,” Mr Moore said in the letter.

In September 2020, Mr McKee circulated an artist’s rendering of the roadway published on the WGTP website which includes text at the bottom of the picture, which read, “Noisewall heights and locations not confirmed”. 

When it was suggested the text may lead people to believe a noise wall would be included in the design, another Railway Resident was told by a representative of WGTP that it was a “copy and paste error”, according to Ms Graham.

In September last year, Federal Member for Melbourne Adam Bandt wrote to the Department of Transport in a letter seen by North West City News asking for confirmation about whether a noise wall will be erected, urging the WGTP to consult with the residents.

“It is my understanding that studies show that medium-sized trucks emit noise levels of 73-78 dB(A) and heavy trucks may emit noise levels of 80-85 dB(A), well in excess of the VicRoads noise level objective,” Mr Bandt wrote.

“I urge you to consider the impact that the noise levels of the freeway will have on amenity and quality of life for local residents at Railway Place.”

A WGTP spokesperson said community and council feedback was factored into its decision making, with the noise from the extension falling “well under” strict limits.