Eastern shore commuters will continue to face delays for the foreseeable future after the state government confirmed there is still no final start date for the $100 million Mornington roundabout upgrade.
Infrastructure and Transport Minister Kerry Vincent said the government was continuing to work through the project’s design details.
“Once we have the designs in place, we have to make sure that the traffic can still flow and that’s what we’re doing at the moment,” he said.
Federal Labor MP Julie Collins accused the state government of putting infrastructure “on go-slow”, despite receiving the funds to complete the project months ago.
She said the current roundabout is one of the “worst” in the state.
“Eastern shore commuters who have been stuck in traffic deserve better than delays,” Collins said.
“The Albanese Labor government has the funding on the table for upgrades to the Mornington roundabout – now it’s time for the Tasmanian government to deliver.”
The federal government has committed $80 million to the project, with the state contributing $20 million.
Vincent said maintaining traffic flow during construction would be a key challenge.
“It’s one of the busiest intersections in southern Tasmania,” he said.
“And it’s very important that we make sure that when we do go to do those projects, we do them in the right order to take the pressure off the roundabout, so that people can still move in and out of those areas, morning and evenings.”
The upgrade forms part of a broader four-project program for the Mornington area identified in a 2021–24 traffic study.
The first stage involves building new ramps at Gordon’s Hill Road to ease pressure on the roundabout before the intersection is converted to traffic lights.
Community consultation on the initial designs is expected in the first half of this year, but a firm construction date remains unclear.
