Level crossing removal off track as advocates arbor strong views on trees

The Level Crossing Removal Project (LXRP) has started work in Caulfield as part of a $4 billion investment into the train network's Frankston line.

The LXRP says this project will reduce congestion along Neerim Road - long standing issues in this community that residents will welcome fixes for.

"We have too many cars," says local Sue Nolle. "We have too much anxiety, too much noise. It drives you to want to leave."

The works also address safety issues. Newsline can exclusively reveal there's been a dozen near misses at Neerim and Glenhuntly Roads since 2016. But the crossings aren't all the LXRP plans to remove.

The state government plans to install a shared-use bike and pedestrian path along Queen's Avenue. But those plans mean hundreds of trees are set to face the chainsaws.

That's an issue for local advocate Tamara de Silva, who says the trees "provide a canopy, they're habitat for wildlife and Glen Eira has the lowest canopy of local government areas."

Fellow advocate Jane Karslake agrees: "To be taking out trees is just absurd and is counterintuitive."

Now residents have taken their fight to City Hall, submitting a petition with 289 signatures. Council have noted it and they say they're on board.

"Those trees don't have to be removed, they just don't have to be," says Glen Eira Mayor Jim Magee, "and if their engineers can't design it that way, then they need to find new engineers that can."

But the government says a design that can comes at a cost.

"The LXRP believe that's about a $10 million adjustment," says Magee. "We're happy to live with that as long as the government's paying."

But not everyone's on board. "No, I've been told that $10 million isn't much money," says Nolle. "Well, it is for me."

De Silva says the cost works out to $1.2 million per hundred meters. "It's absolutely a ridiculous sum of money."

And not worth it to passionate cyclist Nolle, still biking days before her hip replacement surgery.

"I can cycle 50 kilometers, but I can't walk five meters," says Nolle. "Cycling is the best thing ever."

But Nolle says bikes belong on roads. "Shared user parts are the most dangerous things for cyclists."

"Should they limit that to one function, it will be safer," suggests Karslake, "but they'll also need less land and they'll be able to preserve the trees."

But for now, a stay of execution. The LXRP says no trees will be chopped until there's been further community consultation.

In a statement to Newsline, an LXRP spokesperson wrote: "Our project includes a new walking and cycling path to better connect Glenhuntly and Caulfield stations and make it easier for locals to commute and exercise."

"We look forward to sharing further details with the community once the design of the path is finalised."