Construction work to remove one of Ballarat's most loathed roundabouts, at the corner of Hertford and Albert Streets in Sebastopol, will begin early next year.
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Traffic lights will replace the roundabout, the oldest one in Ballarat, to reduce traffic congestion and ease driver frustration.
Roads minister Jaala Pulford said planning works were underway and the project would be "shovel ready" by the end of the year with work to start in early 2020.
The roundabout removal is part of a $60.8 million package to improve road safety around Ballarat.
At the same time, the Midland Highway will be expanded from two lanes to four for about 700m between Queen Street and Docwra Street and a new roundabout will be installed at the notorious Docwra St intersection, with an upgraded school crossing to make it safer for Magpie Primary School students to get to school.
The city's growth zones to the south and west are driving increased volume on many major roads and intersections.
"We are seeing a lot of growth in Ballarat and with that growth comes a lot more traffic and when you get traffic at intersections like this you get congestion and that leads to frustration," said Regional Roads Victoria regional director Mal Kersting.
"We are aware that traffic levels around Ballarat generally are increasing rapidly. We also know a number of intersections are really struggling to cope. This is one and we are really keen to get in and fix it so the roads operate more smoothly with less congestion, less confusion for motorists and it will be safer for pedestrians crossing."
Other works in the upgrades package include installation of traffic lights at the intersections of Wiltshire Lane and the Glenelg Highway, Wiltshire Lane and Latrobe St, and Gillies St and Gregory Street West, and a roundabout at Dyson Drive-Carngham Rd intersection.
The opening of the new Bunnings store in Delacombe, expected before August, will add extra pressure to the Wiltshire Lane-Glenelg Highway roundabout. With the rapid growth in the area and the expected increase in traffic, there are concerns about road safety in the area and if infrastructure will be able to keep up.
Mr Kersting and Ms Pulford both warned drivers that there would be disruption as the works progressed in Sebastopol and more broadly across the city, but the pain would be worth it.
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"It might be a bit disruptive and chaotic while works are underway but that's not an unreasonable price to pay for much smoother traffic in this part of Ballarat," Ms Pulford said.
Buninyong MP Michaela Settle said congestion around the notorious Hertford St-Albert St roundabout was one of the biggest issues that local residents identified.
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