21 August 2020

At the Ordinary Council Meeting on Tuesday 11 August 2020, Council adopted the Ferguson Street Williamstown North (and Aviation Road Laverton) Level Crossing Precinct Plans.

Council will now advocate to the Victorian Government for a funding partnership to enable implementation of the recommended upgrades, which would complement the Level Crossing Removal Projects (LXRP) work.

The Ferguson Street Williamstown North Precinct Plan includes various improvements that address long standing community concerns about safety (including cyclist, pedestrian and vehicular), amenity and open space opportunities. The community has steered the direction of the plans through a range of engagement opportunities, following considerable work undertaken by Council’s Community Interest Groups for the projects.

State government funding and consideration for the Ferguson Street Precinct Upgrade is one of Council’s Advocacy Priorities for 2020.

Click here to view a copy of the final Ferguson Street Precinct Plan, or download a copy of this from the Document Library.

Ferguson Street Precinct Plan

The final Ferguson Street Precinct Plan features an integrated multimodal transport hub, enhanced open space offerings and improved connectivity for the community of Williamstown and beyond.

The plan takes on board community feedback and is complementary to the LXRP design decision of rail under road with features including:

  • Safe pedestrian and cyclists connecting pathways into and through the precinct
  • Retention of both station houses to be repurposed for the updated station and community use
  • Enlarged community plaza space providing safe access through the precinct and a key meeting point for commuters and students of nearby schools, Relocation of the Power Street playground further north, away from Ferguson Street
  • No increase to the current car park capacity
  • Retention of existing established trees (subject to further formal assessment of their health condition) with additional trees to increase canopy shade
  • Intermodal hub providing a bus terminal, end of trip cyclist facilities and a kiss and ride point

After considering community feedback, Council has elected to consider all traffic measures at a later date in order to review any behavior change following the removal of the level crossing. The delivery of the LXRP project in the coming months will create a different environment that will present changes in pedestrian, cyclist and vehicular activity. Once the new environment is in place, Council will review data together with the state government to determine best placed measures to enable an efficient and safe road network within the precinct. This review will consider both the local and arterial roads within the precinct network.

Click here to view a summary of what we heard from the recent community consultation, or download a copy of this from the Document Library.

For information about the Ferguson Street Level Crossing Level Crossing Removal Project, visit Engage Victoria and the Level Crossing Removal Project websites.