Survey tips chaos- Tecoma Village Action Group is concerned about the impact additional traffi

By Casey Neill
OBJECTORS to a proposed Tecoma supermarket say an independent traffic survey contradicts a VicRoads assessment.
Tecoma Village Action Group’s Nicole Gale said the group had commissioned its own traffic survey because a VicRoads report said the authority could not see any traffic problems near the Burwood Highway site today or in the future.
“Anyone living around here knows that traffic is already a problem,” Ms Gale said.
Committee member Barbara Crisp said the new, independent study showed the VicRoads traffic survey “grossly underestimated the growth in traffic that would result from the operation of the supermarket”.
“We also found out that further traffic chaos would be generated by this development due to long queues of cars waiting to turn into the supermarket, essentially creating a gridlock on Sandells Road, McNicols Road and Burwood Highway,” she said.
“This will push people on to back roads including Sophia Grove, Clifford Grove and Frame Avenue.”
Group member Melanie de Bree said this would have ramifications for people as far away as Monbulk.
“Traffic flows along Burwood Highway will increasingly clog up adding to the nightmare congestion that already exists in Belgrave and extend it past Tecoma,” she said.
Developer Freeman Tecoma applied last September to build the $7 million supermarket, specialty store and undercover parking at 1529 Burwood Highway.
A Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal on 7 September will decide the development’s fate.
Objectors said the development would increase traffic and noise, endanger pedestrians, ruin the township’s “village feel” and be of little benefit to the town.