Punt Road will be turned into a permanent clearway next month, stopping single parked cars clogging up one of the city's busiest arterial roads.
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The 24-hour clearways on Punt Road will operate from August 29 seven days a week. Currently, clearways operate on weekdays only, along both the eastern and western sides between 6.30-9.30am and 3.30-6.30pm.
The permanent clearways will apply along both sides of Punt Road, from the Yarra River to St Kilda Junction.
Roads Minister Luke Donnellan said the new permanent clearways would be strictly enforced.
"People's cars will be towed away. We want to make it very clear very early there will be fines: a $155 fine and $334 costs to retrieve your vehicle."
Similar permanent clearways will also be considered on the major roads in South Yarra and Prahran that feed into Punt Road – Alexandra Avenue, Toorak Road, Commercial Road and High Street.
The move comes 20 months after the Andrews government was elected on a promise to address the concerns of residents on Punt Road. They want a public acquisition overlay removed because it threatens to one day see their homes taken for widening.
In its election platform, Labor said: "A 50-year-old easement hovering over 140 properties on Punt Road, from Union Street to Alexandra Avenue, gives locals no control over the fate of their own homes. Under Labor, an independent panel will review the easement and help determine its future."
But instead of protecting the road's residents, the government is now considering widening the road, to as much as six lanes instead of the current four.
An independent planning panel has heard evidence from more than 100 residents, government authorities and councils. It will makes its recommendations later this year.
Before a decision is made on widening the road, though, the permanent clearways are being introduced.
The government argues the clearways will improve safety by reducing accidents as vehicles merge, and provide more consistent and reliable bus services.
Three new car parks will also be created, on land that VicRoads owns, on Punt Road as part of introducing permanent clearways.
Mr Donnellan said motorists "know the frustration of getting stuck on Punt Road, especially on the weekend or off-peak", and said extending the clearways would help resolve this.
