Yallambie residents furious as major project permanently closes key section of road
Residents living near the North East Link development have criticized the project for backtracking on a promise to reopen a key road, saying it left their communities vulnerable during bushfires and medical emergencies.
An 85-metre section of Borlase Street in Yallambie, north-east of Melbourne, was closed in mid-2022 to facilitate construction of the major infrastructure project. Locals said the street would be reopened after six years.
However, in February 2023, Victorian Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny approved new plans making the closure permanent. The change has left around 80 homes in the area with a single access point to Lower Plenty Road, raising concerns about emergency and evacuation access.
Resident Narelle Lawton, who has lived in the area for more than 20 years, says her community is desperate to see the road restored.
“It’s caused years of stress…it’s been a constant struggle. But this path is important,” he said. “I’m really worried about people’s lives being lost if there’s a medical emergency… or if there’s a wildfire.”
Of particular concern to residents is that the sections of Kay Court, Fahey Crescent and Amanda Court in Yallambie affected by the road closures are in a bushfire prone area. Homes in this category have been marked by the state government as likely to be exposed to fire.
Emergency service access to the site is also an issue. In February 2025, when a truck overturned at the nearby intersection of Lower Plenty Road and the Greensborough Highway, Lawton said an ambulance was unable to access the site to attend to an ill resident.
“Luckily, it wasn’t a life-threatening illness for the ambulance to come in. But they couldn’t actually get in,” he said.
A spokesperson for the North East Link project said updated plans showing the closure of Borlase Street had been made public and its removal provided more space for the Banyule Creek, wetlands and parkland.
The spokesman said traffic modeling and road safety assessments were carried out to ensure access was adequate.
“We will continue to work closely with residents, as well as stakeholders including emergency services and local councils, and support them throughout the work,” they said.
Amy McKellar, a resident who lives in the affected neighborhood, said she was disturbed by the community consultation process and felt her perspective was not properly considered.
“Their answers [such] McKellar said of his correspondence with North East Link: PR marketing they don’t actually address the questions we have.
“This has been the biggest loss of our lives… the administrative burden they put on us… it’s like they want us to be worn out so we’ll give up.”
The project’s construction faced wider criticism for its impact on Melbourne’s north-eastern suburbs. In January, a large hole opened up at a sports oval in Heidelberg, and the investigation showed that the incident was caused by tunnel boring.
In July, the project’s dust suppressant turned Banyule Creek a bright blue, and more recently the North East Link quietly canceled a promised wildlife crossing under a busy road in Rosanna.
The buildup of incidents was criticized at a Banyule Town Council meeting on February 9, with councilor Matt Wood saying the community had a “real trust issue” with the road project.
“Laws have been passed that allow these major projects to go forward, but they’re moving forward regardless of what’s going on internally and in the environment,” Wood said. Age.
He said the council had limited consultation with North East Link and had not yet received any traffic survey data regarding the road closure at Yallambie.
At their most recent meeting, council members voted to formally request access to detailed data and passed a separate motion to request the Environmental Protection Agency increase health testing in the area.
“Once the project is completed in three or four years, everyone will pack up and leave, and the residents and the council will be the ones affected by the impacts,” Wood said.
“I absolutely support the project. It will bring great results for our city. But these indiscriminate impacts we are seeing…need to be taken into account and managed appropriately.”
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