Melbourne’s West Gate Tunnel Left Thousands of Trees Short

The single sharpest fact in one or two punchy sentences. Who did what, where, when, and why it matters. Not a summary of everything — the one thing that makes someone stop scrolling. A reader who only reads this paragraph must understand what happened. A staggering 2,971 trees are missing from the promised West Gate Tunnel replanting program in Melbourne's West Gate Tunnel. According to a report by the City of Melbourne, only 1,176 trees have been planted, falling short of the promised five replacement trees for every one ripped out for the $10 billion project. The West Gate Tunnel impacts report, published ahead of the City of Melbourne's council meeting on Tuesday, reveals the shortfall. The report states that due to the high cost of tree planting in urban streets and limited space, the 5:1 tree replacement commitment cannot be met. In the City of Melbourne, 891 trees were removed during the construction of the West Gate Tunnel, resulting in approximately 9,000 square meters of lost canopy cover. The City of Melbourne has requested funding from the government to deliver an accelerated tree planting program in the most affected neighborhoods. A spokesperson for the Victorian government claimed the West Gate Tunnel is on track to plant more trees than were removed, with hundreds already planted and over 1,000 to be planted by the end of the year. However, residents are unconvinced by these claims.

Lord Mayor Nick Reece acknowledged the importance of shade and greenery in the local neighborhoods. He emphasized that the City of Melbourne will focus on replacement canopy cover rather than tree numbers, aiming to double the tree canopy lost due to tree removals by 2040. The City of Melbourne will consider asking the government to designate some roads as 24/7 no-truck zones and has requested speed limit changes. Councilor Reece expressed concern about the use of local streets as highways and the increased risk to the community.

A Kensington Association chair, Kate Kennedy, expressed concern about the 'smoke and mirrors' surrounding the tree replanting commitment. 'There's definitely not much greenage around the tunnel,' she said. 'It's not a green space.'

A Kensington Business Association president, Sean McConville, expressed disappointment over the lack of effort to deliver on the commitment to replant the trees removed. The Transport and Amenity Program (TAP) allocated $100 million to manage the impacts of the West Gate Tunnel in North Melbourne and West Melbourne, but all work on TAP projects has been paused, awaiting the outcome of a six-month monitoring period.