How long does it take VicRoads to fix a failing retaining wall? Well, in the case of the Taylors Road underpass at St Albans, it only took them a decade.
The story begins
Once upon a time Taylors Road was a road in the middle of nowhere, beyond the edge of suburban Melbourne.
But Melbourne soon caught up, with boom barriers provided at the level crossing in 1986, and suburban electric trains to Watergardens station following in 2002.
And so in 2006 the Taylors Road Project was given the go ahead to remove the level crossing.
The Taylors Road rail underpass project eliminated a railway level crossing and a five-leg roundabout between Carbine Way and Kerrison Avenue in St. Albans, Melbourne’s north-west. This AU$54 million project constructed a new road underpass beneath rural-metropolitan rail lines improving safety for drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, public transport, rail users and eased traffic congestion.
The first stage of the main contract was to transfer traffic south of the roundabout to provide sufficient work area to construct the rail bridge. The bridge was constructed on two concrete beams east of the existing railway line, minimising disruption to the rail services. Once this 1200 tonne rail bridge was completed, a 56 hour weekend occupation of the railway line was programmed for October 2007 to jack the bridge into its final position with replacement buses provided in lieu of the normal rail services.
Following successful placement of the bridge that weekend, the next stage was to complete excavation under the rail bridge, construction of associated retaining walls and the road beneath including the a signalised intersection. Road traffic was transferred under the bridge in September 2008 and the project was officially opened at the end of November 2008, ahead of time.
Google Street View imagery from December 2007 shows work on the new bridge well underway.
Google Street View December 2007
With the next Google Street View run in January 2010 showing a completed underpass.
Google Street View January 2010
And the cracks begins
November 2017 I first noticed the underpass looked a little decrepit – with rusted steel beams supporting a cracked concrete wall, with staff in hi-vis looking it over.
But Google Street View suggests those beams had been there since 2014 at least.
Google Street View Feubrary 2014
The props were still there in 2018.
And by 2022 they’d been joined by a few pieces of sheetmetal.
And then in February 2023 – survey prisms has also been added.
Just in time for VicRoads to announce they were finally going to fix the problem.
Maintenance works at Taylors Road and East Esplanade
Location: Keilor Downs
Type: Road Status: Underway
We’re completing maintenance works on the retaining wall at the corner of Taylors Road and East Esplanade.As part of these works we will also be installing new pavement surface on a section of East Esplanade Service Road and Taylors Road Service Road.
What we’re doing
– Remediation works on the retaining wall at Taylors Road and East Esplanade
– Installing a section of new pavement surface on East Esplanade Service Road and Taylors Road Service Road
– Repainting the retaining wall.When to expect us
You may see crews on site from Monday 6 February as they complete site investigations and begin to establish a worksite ahead of works commencing Monday 13 February. Works are expected to take seven weeks to complete, weather permitting.
Works will take place Monday to Friday, 7am to 5pm and some Saturdays, as required.
What to expect
During these works, you can expect:
– Temporary lane and footpath closures on Taylors Road and East Esplanade with signage and traffic controllers in place
– Temporary closure of Taylors Road Service Road and East Esplanade Service Road. Traffic controllers will be in place to assist residents accessing their property
– Temporary impacts to on-street parking on Taylors Road Service Road and East Esplanade Service Road
– Non-local traffic wanting to access Taylors Road Service Road and East Esplanade Service Road will be detoured via Charles Street and Power Street
– Reduced speeds during works to ensure the safety of our crews and motorists
– High levels of noise and dust, we’ll work towards minimising these impacts as much as possible.
With the new road surface and patched up retaining wall visible when I went past a few weeks ago.
I wonder what other bits of crumbing infrastructure are also propped up across Melbourne.
The railway cutting west of Camberwell Station had many rock bolts added to the northern side a couple of decades ago. Whilst it’s not failing per se, some level of degradation necessitated the fairly drastic action that was taken.
I wonder when Metro Trains will get around to fixing that retaining wall at Armadale station. It’s had the temporary supports in for years…
Since 2017 at least.
https://railgallery.wongm.com/crumbling-armadale/
At least they repaired the brick retaining wall that had a blowout right onto the tracks.
To be honest I’m surprised that brick wall at Camberwell lasted that long given how tall it is.
Hey Marcus,
Speaking of propped up, the Telstra Exchange building in Ferntree Gully is currently propped up with jacks…..has been for about 3-4 years.
Its located here:
37°53’12.8″S 145°17’40.5″E
The southern corner is slowly falling away and has been held by prop jacks for years now.
Quality infrastructure.
According to Google Street View is was okay back in 2021.
https://www.google.com/maps/@-37.8869122,145.2945609,3a,75y,65.47h,96.61t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sFCzM3mR1RyhReU_YuoKe2Q!2e0!5s20230801T000000!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu
I am noticing increasing use of so-called Powerblocks — massive 1m-wide concrete cubes chained to — and propping up — leaning power poles to stop them leaning even further. I see them everywhere now! Have the power companies done an audit to show how hazardous those leaning poles are and suddenly realised how many there are? Keep a lookout for them!
I’ve noticed them around a lot recently – here is an example I found back in 2019.