Our Environment Strategy guides all VicRoads activities, from developing and maintaining the road network to how we operate as an organisation. Our Environment Strategy (2005-2015) indicates how we will help maintain and protect Victoria’s environment.

The Environment Strategy (2005 – 2015) outlines three key directions.

• improve the liveability of communities - planning and design of the road network to enhance the broader landscape, local environment, visual amenity and wellbeing of communities
• protect and enhance the natural and cultural environment - avoiding, minimising and offsetting our environmental impacts and improving the condition of roadside assets in a proactive and consultative manner
• be an environmentally responsible organisation - understanding and acknowledging the impacts of our actions, evaluating projects against whole-of-life costs, striving to deliver high quality environmental outcomes
  
  

The sustainability of Victoria’s transport network depends on us managing the road network in an environmentally sensitive way. This involves:

• striking a balance between the need to move people and goods safely,
• ongoing stewardship of natural resources, and
• the need to enhance the liveability of communities
  

To support the Environment Strategy, we have developed an Environmental Sustainability Policy (2008). This policy helps us further our contribution to the social, economic and environmental development of natural resources within Victoria. Our Environmental Sustainability Policy guides us on:

• conserving natural resources
• reducing our carbon footprint
• using goods and services that have minimal environmental impact, yet are value for money
  
  

We are working towards a more sustainable transport system. The definition of sustainable transport we have adopted is:

“the ability to meet the needs of society to move freely, gain access, communicate, trade, and establish relationships without sacrificing other essential human or ecological values today or in the future".

This means transport that is concerned with:

• accessibility
• reliability
• safety
• equity
• travel time
• environmental impacts and human well being
• resource use
• public revenues and expenditures
• greenhouse gas emissions
• security