THE Anthony’s Cutting realignment between Bacchus Marsh and Melton is expected to open early next week.The newly-built five kilometre stretch of the Western Highway will allow drivers to bypass the steeper Anthony’s Cutting route.Ballarat MP Catherine King said a community open day will be held tomorrow at the project site office on Hopetoun Park Road between 11am and 2pm.“This is great news for people who travel the Western Highway between Melton, Bacchus Marsh, Ballarat and beyond – the project is something the community should celebrate,” Ms King said.“Local weather conditions and effective scheduling work by the alliance team is delivering this project well ahead of schedule.“Once the new stretch is open it will be a fully functioning and busy freeway that people won’t be able to see this way again.”Ms King said it was still unsure when the road would be open but it was tipped to be early in the week.More than 29,000 vehicles per day, including more than 4000 freight vehicles, travel the highway section daily.State Transport Minister Terry Mulder said the new freeway connection would eliminate the tight curves and low-speed section through Anthony’s Cutting, which has seen 21 casualty crashes over the past five years.The $200 million Western Highway – Anthony’s Cutting realignment project is jointly funded by the federal and state governments as part of the National Building Program and the Victorian Transport Plan.