Melbourne’s troubled West Gate Tunnel will finally be ready to welcome motorists on Sunday, according to sources.
The project, which is three years overdue, provides another major road link between the city’s booming western suburbs and the CBD.
While the government is refusing to officially say when it will open, multiple sources have told the ABC it will be ready to open this Sunday with a formal announcement expected later this afternoon.
Premier Jacinta Allan repeatedly declined to confirm Sunday as the opening date when asked about the tunnel on ABC Radio Melbourne on Friday morning.
“We’re working through the details and we’ll confirm that date very soon,” she said.
Thousands of Melburnians got their first look inside the tunnel last month. (ABC News: Leanne Wong)
The project was initially costed at $5.5 billion with just $400 million of taxpayer investment, but that has since blown out to $10.2 billion with the state chipping in $4.2 billion.
Melburnians got their first look inside the tunnel last month when it opened to foot traffic for a “discovery day” that saw 50,000 people walk through the tunnel.
The event was held despite protests from the United Firefighters Union (UFU) which claimed the tunnel had not undergone adequate safety checks.
The government and Major Road Projects Victoria dismissed those concerns and said the tunnel had been sufficiently tested.