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Getting out of Thornhill Park is never simple, even on the best run.
To get to the city from this fringe suburb in Melbourne’s west, you must first drive away from the city, merging into fast-moving traffic on the Western Freeway, then turn back the way you came at the Ferris Road overpass.
Thornhill Park resident Zak stands at the Alfred Road closure, which has added 45 minutes to his journey to collect his daughter from daycare. Credit: Jason South
Those heading west towards Melton have a second option: Alfred Road. It’s a rural road, with gravel verges and no dividing lines for most of its length, but it’s the quickest way to Cobblebank train station, the closest public transport link for this suburb of 8000 people, which has no public transport of its own.
But Alfred Road has just been closed for roadworks – for four months.
A convoluted detour set up by the council has added an extra five to 15-kilometre journey each way for the suburb’s increasingly frustrated residents, who will get no relief until December.
“It’s basically added on an extra 30 to 40 minutes travel just to do basic things like go to the local Coles,” says Thornhill Park resident Zak, who didn’t want to use his surname for privacy reasons.
“I’ve got a three-year-old daughter who goes to daycare in Melton. A round trip to pick her up would normally take me about 25 minutes. Last Thursday I left my house at five, I didn’t get back home until quarter past six.”
The road closure’s substantial impact on Thornhill Park underlines the piecemeal nature of urban development in Melbourne’s growth corridors and the total car dependency of newer suburbs such as Thornhill Park.
Over coming months, The Age is strengthening its focus on Melbourne’s booming west with a special series examining the positives and challenges the region faces. In October, our reporters will moderate a West of Melbourne Economic Development Alliance’s (WoMEDA) summit to discuss a vision for the western suburbs’ success. The alliance of university, industry, community and local government experts works to unlock the west’s economic potential.
Thornhill Park is a high-density subdivision in Melbourne’s west, surrounded by paddocks that await their turn to be developed into more high-density housing.
The four-month closure of Alfred Road has cut off direct access to the Melton line for Thornhill Park residents.Credit: Jason South
Alfred Road cuts through those paddocks. Its closure has been triggered by housing developers who are about to subdivide the area.
The road was closed on August 18, with residents given just 12 days’ notice. It will reopen on December 5 as an upgraded urban standard road.
Jayson Paul uses Alfred Road to get to Cobblebank station to take the V/Line train into the city for work. When he first moved to the area, he didn’t own a car, but quickly realised life would be impossible without one.
“Within a month, I decided I had to have a car because there is really no way to get out of the estate without one,” he says.
The current road closure has added 20 minutes to his commute to the train station. His partner, a school teacher, has been hit harder, with the school pick-up crush adding 45 minutes to the homebound journey.
Alfred Road was also closed for a number of weeks in 2023.
“Every time Alfred Road closes ... it’s a lot of pain for residents, and no one [decision makers] seems to take it particularly seriously,” Paul said.
“For the last two years, it’s been working well; they even duplicated a part of it. So this sudden closure, it hit hard.”
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The road’s 15-week closure has led to calls for Melton council to commit the funds to build a second east-west road out of Thornhill Park. The master plan for the suburb – gazetted in state parliament in 2010 – includes a second such road, but it has a projected construction date of 2028.
Thornhill Park resident Matt Pearse has gained 800 signatures on a petition to the council to fast-track its construction, arguing the community cannot afford to wait three more years given the breakaway pace of urban expansion in greater Melton.
“We have got another seven communities being built along the Melton corridor, and they are going to face the exact same situation,” Pearse said.
It’s not the first time Pearse has petitioned Melton council about poor road access in Thornhill Park.
Councillors voted unanimously in March 2023 to pursue land acquisition discussions that would enable construction of Shogaki Drive in response to a previous petition by Pearse.
“It is an absolute nightmare and I think it is time we did everything in our power, like we have suggested in this report, in continuing to support these residents,” current mayor Steve Abboushi said at the time.
But Shogaki Drive remains in the design phase, with funding for construction yet to be allocated, 2 ½ years on from the vote.
Pearse said residents were deeply frustrated.
“We know we are a growing community, we have been well aware of that for an extended time, but we would just like certainty on when infrastructure will be delivered,” he said.
Thornhill Park has a population of about 8378, according to Melton council.
A council spokesperson said the construction of Shogaki Drive was scheduled for 2028, but that the council was looking at options to fast-track this.
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“Alfred Road is currently being upgraded by developers to an urban standard as required by a planning permit,” the spokesperson said. “There was no ability to build the road while allowing traffic to use the road. Council worked with the developers to minimise disruption as much as possible.”
Separately, the state government is planning to upgrade the Western Freeway between Caroline Springs and Melton, which is used by 86,000 cars a day.
The Albanese government has committed funding to the upgrade, but design details have not been revealed, including a long-planned interchange for Thornhill Park residents.
The West of Melbourne Summit, presented by WoMEDA with The Age, will be held on October 22 and 23. For details go to womeda.com.au
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