Colchester Road Street Lighting Improvements

Project categoryRoads and carparks, Traffic
StatusCompleted
Approx. start date5 November 2023

Street lighting improvements are now complete at Colchester Road between Canterbury Road and the Dandenong Creek following a Federal Black Spot Program funding commitment.

Background

Colchester Road (Canterbury Road to Dandenong Creek) was been identified as a black spot due to recent crash history, including a high number of night-time crashes. During the five-year period between 1 July 2015 to 30 June 2020, 10 casualty crashes, including six (6) serious injury crashes, were recorded on Colchester Road between Canterbury Road and the Dandenong Creek. Four (4) of the 10 recorded crashes (40 per cent) occurred between the hours of 10pm to 5am, when Colchester Road experienced less than 4 per cent of its average daily traffic. Night-time crashes are more than 10-times over-represented in recent crash history.

Installing new or upgraded road lighting significantly improves safety for all road users, including pedestrians. A review of street lighting on this section of Colchester Road also found that lighting levels should be increased to assist night-time walking, cycling, public transport and safe driving, particularly as Colchester Road functions as a bus route.

Benefits

Under the Australian and Victorian Government’s Black Spot Program, $222,000 was allocated for both new and upgraded lighting near intersections and pedestrian refuges along sections of Colchester Road to:

Improve safety along Colchester Road by increasing general lighting levels.
Improve safety at key conflict points, e.g. intersections and pedestrian refuges.
Maintain residential amenity by limiting any increased light spill onto adjacent property to appropriate levels.
Protect habitat value areas, i.e., the Canterbury Road Retarding Basin and Dandenong Creek, by installing a louvre or shield on lights near these sites.

View the plans

A high-level summary of the lighting works can be viewed below.

Colchester Road, Kilsyth - lighting improvement project map(PDF, 1MB)

Further information

For further information on the lighting works, contact Council’s Project Engineer, Douglas Smith, on 9298 4598 or email maroondah@maroondah.vic.gov.au