The council has welcomed the updated design, which will now include a plaza connecting Beresford Street with Hamilton Street Village, and is considered a significant improvement on the previously proposed standalone footbridge.
A council spokesperson said it was also good news to hear that the heritage-listed Mont Albert Station will not be lost, but rather reinstalled not far away from its current location. He added:
“These design improvements are clearly in response to persistent, dedicated advocacy efforts of residents and local groups, and reinforced by Council. Local advocates are to be congratulated!”
Among Melbourne's worst level crossings, there have been two fatalities and eight near misses between the two since 2005. The aim of the new works is to improve safety, ease congestion and provide services that are more frequent for locals.
A graphic design of proposed works is often created for major projects such as this that involve changes to areas with high traffic.
It is expected that major construction work will begin in 2022 and boom gates will be removed by 2023. The removal of the level crossings is part of a State Government project that seeks to remove 85 of Victoria's congested and dangerous level crossings by 2025.