The QLRAG submitted a question to the Meeting of the Port Phillip City Council on the 19th April. This action and the prior 4+ months of advocacy has resulted in the commitment by Council to a review (traffic assessment) and recommendations to be completed by August 2023. Further the Council has committed to engage with QLRAG “in particular” with respect to the findings. Public questions are summarised below. The submissions were made verbally and can be listened to in full. 

The Queens Lane Resident Action Group (QLRAG), representing the  residents in the Queens Lane precinct, is concerned about the lack of a contemporary  traffic assessment and management plan for the lane given the recent Council approvals of developments within the lane and future development that will inevitably be approved  by Council. By its own admission Council recognises the traffic issues that currently exist  in the lane. Traffic congestion will only become worse with current and future  developments planned along the laneway. Traffic flows have been further affected by the  recent closure of vehicles lanes on St Kilda Road to accommodate a wider bicycle lane.

When will the Council recognise and act on the concerns raised by the long-suffering ratepayers in the precinct and undertake a current traffic assessment and introduce appropriate traffic flow controls that will provide reasonable access and amenity for residents living along the lane?

Nellie Montague, Acting Manager Partnerships and Transport thanked the QLRAG for their advocacy and feedback around traffic and parking issues in Queens Lane. Council officers have looked into the request and are progressing an investigation that builds on reviews and  works completed in 2017 and will consider the feedback provided by QLRAG, the current development context and more recent changes to the road network in the area as outlined in the question. The investigation has begun and will be completed by August 2023.

Recommendations from this investigation will then be costed and planned to determine the next steps, which will be communicated to the community in particular the QLRAG.

Separately QLRAG are conducting an independent analysis of the traffic issues we all know so well. Our analysis will insure we are fully advised of all implications for any changes going forward. 

I see this result as substantive given the difficulty in getting the attention of Council and represents the first real analysis of Queens Lane since 2017.

We will continue to advocate on the residents behalf, ensure Council complies with these undertakings and keep you informed of progress.

We are engaged in VCAT currently, appealing the decision to award a planning permit to 448 St. Kilda Road. That action will play out in June 2023. 

Bryan Mears