Traffic

Road Management
The public road network is managed by VicRoads, private owners and Council. 

When making a traffic enquiry to Council, we may forward your concern onto the appropriate land owner as we will not be able to assist you.  To ensure your privacy is maintained, a Council officer will confirm with you that it is acceptable to pass on your contact details.

Speeding Vehicles
Council manages requests for speeding on local roads in a transparent manner to provide as clear advice as possible.  In most instances the issue arises due to local residents driving carelessly as they are familiar with the road environment. Council will not immediately program a physical traffic treatment when a speeding issue is identified as we follow the following principles:

• Educate motorists by improving signs and running the ‘Not So Fast’ (LINK) program
• Enforcement by Victorian Police
• Encourage travel using sustainable (LINK to DTS) and low impact (LINK to DSTS) modes
• Engineering treatments that lower vehicle speeds without reducing walking, cycling or public transport amenity

‘Hoon’ Driver Behaviour

Anti-hoon laws are about making roads safer and reducing road trauma. They were introduced in Victoria in July 2006 to give Victoria Police the power to impound, immobilise or permanently confiscate vehicles driven by people in a dangerous manner. You can read more about the laws at the Victoria Police website. 

Victoria Police investigate and prosecute hoon drivers. If you have concerns about hoon driver behaviour in your area, you can report their behaviour to the Hoon Hotline online or by calling 1800 333 000.

Traffic Volumes in Darebin
As Darebin lies between the City of Whittlesea and the Melbourne Central Business District, there is a significant proportion of through traffic in the peak periods. Some of this traffic elects to use the local road network in preference to the arterial road network. This situation is difficult to manage without creating issues for residents in accessing their homes.

• Local Roads – roads intended primarily to provide access to residential properties (typically up to 3,000 vehicles per day).
• Collector Roads – roads intended primarily to provide access to abutting residential properties and to local roads, and to connect neighbourhoods to arterial roads. These may also carry public transport (typically 3,000 to 8,000 vehicles per day).
• Arterial Roads  – roads intended primarily to carry through traffic and are managed by VicRoads.

Trucks and Heavy Vehicles on local roads
Some residents of Darebin may experience high volumes of trucks and heavy vehicles as these operators seek a route to our employment areas. 

Council has approved some roads as freight corridors, but these are few in number and are chosen to minimise the impact on our residents. Normally, designated truck routes have pavements constructed to withstand the extra loading that a large sized truck presents.

If you feel that trucks are damaging a particular section of road surface, please contact our Customer Service section on 8470 8888.

Freight
We understand that Freight Management is important for businesses in Darebin and that there can be negative impacts to our residents.  In order to provide access to businesses without reducing resident amenity, freight is encouraged onto strategic routes designed to carry such vehicles.

If you have a concern with truck parking, loading zones, or trucks in a residential street, please contact Customer Service on 8470 8888.

National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) Scheme

The heavy vehicle industry is going through a period of change with the introduction of national regulation. 

During this transition period please forward truck permits and inquiries regarding the NHVR to email truck.permits@darebin.vic.gov.au.

Further Information
To make an enquiry or complaint about traffic issues in your area, please email or call our Customer Service Team
Phone: 8470 8888
Email: mailbox@darebin.vic.gov.au

Directional Signs (Blue with White Text)

If you are a community facility/organisation, you can apply for a blade type directional sign/s to assist visitors to locate you.

For organisations to be eligible to apply you must provide community benefit, for example schools, places of worship or health providers.

A non refundable assessment can be undertaken for the fee of $154 (incl. GST)  Apply for Directional Signs Online (select directional signs and then choose next).

If your assessment is successful, you will then receive an invoice for the manufacturing and installation fee of $230 (incl. GST) per sign.

Directional signs are reviewed every five years at which time you may be sent a further invoice.

Street Identification Signage
If your street blade identification sign is lost, damaged or broken, please contact our Customer Service team on 8470 8888 for a replacement.

On-Road Business Signage
Businesses you can apply for a sign to have your business name displayed on the side of the road.  To apply you will need to complete and submit a Goods on Footpath Application form and pay a fee.

On Road Tourism Signage
If you require Tourism Signage you need to contact VicRoads.

Updates from the Darebin Sustainable Transport Team
You can sign up for updates on transport projects and programs being managed by Darebin City Council by using the form here.

Further Information
Customer Service team
Phone: 8470 8888

Neighbourhood Street Parties

Neighbourhood Street Parties are a great way to get to know your neighbours. We encourage communities to host street parties through offering resources including free public liability insurance policies (limited number available) and road closure permits at no cost. Community events are not eligible for the Street Parties Program. To help you prepare for any road closures you need to download and read the Guide for Road Closure Signage Diagram. 

If you would like to apply to hold a Street Party you need to complete the online Street Party Application Form 6 weeks prior to the event. Once Council has confirmed these details, you will need to notify everyone affected by the road closure using the Notification to Residents and Traders of Street Party Template and record their consent on the Resident Signature Register.

Further Information
Community Wellbeing
Phone: 8470 8587

How Does Council Manage Traffic

In line with Council’s adopted Transport Strategy – Going Places, we seek to provide a safe transport environment for all road users.  To ensure we were meeting this objective, Council surveyed all 67,000 residents to seek their feedback on what their concerns were when travelling around the Municipality.  This clearly indicated that vehicles speeding, crashes and traffic volumes in their neighbourhood were the primary concerns.

In line with the Municipal wide traffic survey results, Council reviewed all roads in Darebin to identify where speeding, crashes and high volumes are regularly observed.  We are using this information to these manage issues within broader precincts.  Through ongoing engagement with our community we will be implementing works to make our streets a safer place.  This diagram of the Traffic Management Approach charts the process that we are following.

Transport Management Projects 
Initial projects were identified through last year’s municipal-wide community consultation on transport priorities. Please read the 2015-2016 Traffic Management Projects for the status of each of the 17 locations as of mid-May 2016. 

Cheddar Road Local Area Place Making Project

The Cheddar LAPM project commenced in 2018, following a number of road safety concerns raised by the community which were backed up through traffic and collision data. As part of Council's commitment to road safety and improving the road environment for local residents, pedestrians and cyclists, we’re now asking for the community’s input on the draft concept plans for the project area.

For more information on the project and how to contribute, please visit the Darebin Your Say page. We are collecting feedback until 20 July 2020. www.yoursaydarebin.com.au/cheddarlapm.

The Cheddar LAPM project aims to achieve:

• Streets that are designed to encourage slower vehicle speeds
• A local streets network that discourages unnecessary through traffic movement (like 'rat-running')
• Safer opportunities to cross streets
• Streets that are safe and encourage bike riding

Springthorpe Boulevard Macleod 
Improved traffic management treatments are planned for Springthorpe Boulevard as part of our 2015/16 projects. 

An in-depth community consultation was held early this year. Ideas were developed into these designs. Please note: this is a large file and best viewed on a computer. A hard copy is also on display at the Springthorpe Country Club. Construction dates will be announced shortly.  

Darebin Speed Limit Reduction Program 2019-2020
We are working towards local neighbourhoods that are more inviting and safe for all to walk, ride and drive. To help achieve this, we have been working closely with VicRoads and Victoria Police to install safer speed zones to our local streets please visit the status map Darebin Speed Limit Reduction Program 2019-2020.