Managing the environment

We’re removing the dangerous and congested level crossings at McGregor Road, Main Street and Racecourse Road by building a rail bridge over the roads and building new stations at Pakenham and East Pakenham.

The Victorian Government has fast tracked these level crossings for removal as part of a $15 billion investment to upgrade the Pakenham Line which will be boom gate free by 2025.

We’re building a new rail bridge over the roads to reduce local congestion and to allow more train, more often, as well as introducing new community open space for locals to enjoy. The Pakenham community told us protecting the local environment is important and we’re working hard to minimise the impact of our works.

Project features

• New rail bridge over McGregor Road, Main Street and Racecourse Road
• New Pakenham Station
• New East Pakenham Station
• Metro line extended by 2km
• New community open space

Protecting the matted flax-lily

The native matted flax-lily was found within the project area, to the east and west of the Princes Freeway.

The matted flax-lily (Dianella amoena) is a flowering plant that prefers grassy wetland and woodland habitat and can reach up to 90cm in height when flowering.

Considered endangered, there are estimated to be only about 1400 plants remaining in about 120 locations across the south east and west of Victoria.

To help the matted flax-lily conservation we will:

• relocate all matted flax-lilies to a suitable habitat
• follow our project-specific Threatened Species Management Plan
• train all workers on how to identify the matted flax-lily and what to do if one is found.

If any further lilies are found during works, we’ll create no-go zones with no works undertaken in these areas.

Protecting the southern brown bandicoot

Investigations found areas of habitat supporting a small number of native southern brown bandicoot in the project area, to the east and west of Princes Freeway.

The southern brown bandicoot is an endangered species, and we are required by federal and state law to minimise impacts to its habitat. We're committed to protecting the marsupial and other wildlife as we develop designs and during construction.

Southern brown bandicoot habitat to the east of the Princes Freeway will be protected as part of the project’s no-go zones.

To manage impacts during the project we will:

• follow our project-specific Threatened Species Management Plan
• before vegetation removal, a wildlife handler will inspect for any animals and safely rehome fauna we may encounter
• stop works immediately if a southern brown bandicoot is found within the project area
• train all workers on how to identify a southern brown bandicoot and what to do if one is found.
• If any Southern brown bandicoots are found during works, we'll create no-go zones around habitat areas with no works undertaken in this area.

Flood management

We’re undertaking detailed flood modelling looking at Pakenham's rivers, creeks, waterways and drains to understand water flow.

Once construction is complete the project must ensure the existing flood impacts are maintained.

To reduce any potential impact on drainage and flood risk from the project design and construction, we're working with Cardinia Shire Council and Melbourne Water.

Critical design elements helping to control water movement include:

• maintaining existing water flows and infrastructure, such as drains wherever possible
• adjusting the ground level so excess water flows into drains
• modifying existing drains at key locations such as roads and stations
• creating open swale drains to direct and control water
• integrating drainage ponds into design and landscaping.

Construction at Deep Creek

We're minimising project impacts near Deep Creek and Pakenham Creek and have undertaken land surveys to understand how the ground levels impact water flow.

To control water flow to the creeks, the new rail line will be raised slightly on an embankment and we'll replace existing drains.

To reduce the impact to vegetation and creek bed habitats we'll work within the rail corridor, where possible.

We are protecting the environment at Deep Creek by:

• maintaining existing water flow speed and depth where possible
• using erosion protection and water flow control devices
• managing the water flow to help move it around the works area
• relocating existing open drains and other infrastructure.

During construction we'll monitor all works in accordance with the Environment Protection Act 2017. We’ll have real-time monitoring in Deep Creek and we’ll also monitor Pakenham Creek and other local waterways within the project area.