A construction blitz aimed at getting trains running on the Mernda Rail Extension as soon as possible has drawn the ire of a Mernda resident.
Michelle Gilmore, who lives between the Hawkstowe and Mernda stations, is fed up with crews working late nights and early mornings, saying they are disturbing the neighbourhood.
Ms Gilmore said she makes complaints about the noise from the project to the Environment Protection Authority on a daily basis.
“The crews working on Mernda rail are breaking the curfews on noise restrictions. It is absolutely constant. I basically don’t sleep anymore,” she said.
“My house is shaking. The crew are starting at 5am and going through to 9pm.”
Ms Gilmore said a recent 14-day construction blitz which saw crews working 7am to 6pm and then 6pm-4am, Monday to Friday had exacerbated the problem.
Acting Level Crossing Removal Authority project director Carmine Ciavarella said crews were working at nights and on Sundays in some key locations to get trains running as soon as possible.
He said the project team was in regular contact with residents about necessary night works and looked to minimise impacts based on individual circumstances.
The EPA is also regularly informed of proposed works.
“We appreciate that a project of this scale can be noisy for residents and that’s why we have been working closely with the community to manage the project in a way that reduces the impacts as much as possible,” Mr Ciavarella said.
“We’re working around the clock now in key areas to have trains running to Mernda sooner. We’d like to thank everyone for their patience while we get the job done.”
Mr Ciavarella said residents concerned about noise levels or who wanted to discuss the works could contact the project team on 1800 105 105.
