Level Crossing Removal Project – The Coburg Meddler

There have been a number of pieces written about Upfield train line developments over the past few months. This is an attempt to highlight the main issues affecting locals in Coburg.

The level-crossing removal project has been consistently criticised by a number of public interest groups claiming that most of the public consultation for the project has been a sham. The Moreland Council has also been under fire for resting on its laurels while community members have been protesting in the streets.

A confidential Memorandum of Understanding (‘MOU’) between the Moreland Council and the LXRP (then the LXRA) that was signed in 2016 has been the subject of much speculation. It is believed by some members of the community that its contents may answer some questions regarding the council’s relative silence on matters surrounding the level crossing project, such as the contentious tree-felling in Gandolfo Gardens last week.

The Council refused to share details of the MOU when asked by members of the community at a council meeting. The Meddler has learned that a Freedom of Information request has been lodged by curious members of the community. As long as the MOU is hidden from view, residents will continue to guess that the Council’s silence is connected to a monetary pledge towards its Central Coburg 2020 Activity Centre – which includes the creation of a plaza on the station forecourt.

Local community members began to notice that things were awry when faced with Council’s lack of advocacy on the part of the community regarding the Upfield Line Project. This has led to questions about the partiality of the Council; of particular concern for some locals is whether the position of Senior Strategic Planner is funded by the LXRP. The role of Senior Strategic Planner includes acting as a liaison between Council, LXRP, and the community, as well as a Council representative in stakeholder meetings; if it were funded by LXRP, it would call into question the Council’s ability to adequately advance community interests.

Local frustrations about being disregarded and underrepresented were exacerbated when the LXRP held a bicycle stakeholder meeting on 29 January to which they only invited a representative from one cyclist’s advocacy group, Bicycle Network. That representative alerted the other local bicycle interest groups (including Moreland Bicycle User Group and UCC) that were campaigning on the issue, believing that it was an oversight of LXRP to not have invited them to the stakeholder meeting. Upon attempting to attend the meeting, members of the UCC were told they were not invited to join in and that the meeting would be cancelled if they insisted on attending. Police were called to the meeting to eject UCC members who refused to leave. Six police officers who consequently arrived at the scene were reportedly met with a scene of confused office workers, raising eyebrows over the necessity for the police back-up. Richard Tolliday, the Senior Strategic Planner for the Moreland Council, was the sole representative of the Council in this meeting.

While there is general support for the idea of a well-designed elevated train line and station improvements, community members and local groups believe a genuine consultation process could have prevented what has become a fraught project: “We had heard about this project happening, but we had no details from the government, no one really knew what was happening, the timeline was creeping forward quickly, and still very little details about what was going on.” said a UCC spokesperson, “We found out about the plans for the stations through the Age photos released.” The government’s LXRP website states that community suggestions were sought as to how the space around and underneath the new raised railway should be used. These are said to have been gathered from two drop-in sessions and through almost 300 survey responses.

However, a number of individuals and groups have raised serious concerns about the consultation process, with the station designs only being released at the end of the consultation period, and community input seemingly having no influence ahead of the government announcement that the contract was signed and works were going ahead. Controversy over the botched consultation continues as works are underway.

There have been a number of pieces written about Upfield train line developments over the past few months. This is an attempt to highlight the main issues affecting locals in Coburg.

Local individuals and interest groups have spent the last three weeks protesting the tree removal in the Gandolfo Gardens surrounding Moreland Station by the Level Crossing Removal Project (LXRP), the state corporation tasked with the Upfield Line redevelopment.

The protesters argue that some of the trees are up to 100 years old, home to precious ecosystems and have local sentimental value – they are calling on the LXRP to shift the location of the new station so that tree removal is minimised. Protesters say that moving the station roughly 50 metres south so that it spans Moreland Road would not only save the trees but improve accessibility from both sides of the road (a design seen on a number of stations across Melbourne’s metro). The LXRP have rejected this proposal without communicating a clear reason, leaving many to infer that its main priorities are cost saving and an expedited process. James Conlan from the Upfield Corridor Coalition (UCC) says they want to be sure that the project is done well: “We want to make sure we don’t get a cheap and nasty version because we’re Moreland and Coburg which are safe Labour and Greens territory now”.

The removal of four level crossings on the Upfield line between Bell St and Moreland Rd is part of the State Government’s plan to remove 75 level crossings across Melbourne. The Upfield Line project includes elevating Moreland and Coburg stations with the original buildings being preserved underneath the new stations. Other structures of historical significance, such as the old train signaling box at Moreland Station, are being demolished to make way for construction.

Done properly, the skyrail can increase road and foot traffic flow (a benefit to buses as well as cars), create more public spaces and better pedestrian access – as has been achieved in Melbourne’s south-eastern suburbs. No doubt rail redevelopment, including elevation, will become a norm and a necessary response to Melbourne’s population growth and over-reliance on cars. It’s therefore imperative that state and local government learn how to get it right.

At the time of writing, the majority of trees have been felled in the Gandolfo Gardens as well as on the south-west side of Coburg Station.