The Government’s congestion plan, Keeping Melbourne Moving includes $37.8 million to improve the flow of road based public transport. This includes targeted improvements for bus priority.
Bus lanes are being introduced on key bus routes across Melbourne to help improve service reliability and travel times. Giving buses dedicated road space helps them avoid delays along their route.
The installation of bus lanes will also give people better public transport access to services in their community and better connections to Melbourne's train and tram network.
Included in the bus priority program are full time and part time priority bus lanes on the three lane sections of key bus routes on Stud Road.
Before the construction of EastLink, VicRoads identified that it would be possible to provide increased priority for buses along the South East corridor on Stud Road as traffic levels would decrease. The opening of EastLink has seen a decrease in traffic volumes between 22 to 27 per cent on Stud Road, with even greater reductions in truck traffic.
Following consultation with local communities and councils VicRoads will change sections of Stud Road to create full-time ‘set-back’ bus lanes using red pavement between Boronia Road, Bayswater and David Street in Dandenong.
These bus lanes will be installed by early 2010.
VicRoads is investigating altering sections of Springvale Road to create part-time ‘set-back’ bus lanes between Mitcham Road, Donvale and Heatherton Rd, Springvale, using line marking.
The bus lanes are proposed to operate in line with current parking and clearway restrictions i.e. if the section of the road is marked as a Clearway between 4.30pm and 6:30pm, the bus lane would operate between 4.30pm and 6:30pm.
A set-back bus lane is line marked or has red pavement installed, and stops approximately 250m before a signalised traffic intersection.
This means drivers are given access to all lanes at these intersections, without impacting on current through traffic volumes. However, the objective is to ensure that the bus passes through the intersection within two traffic light cycles.
For further information on the proposed bus lanes -