In a statement, the Department of Transport's head of transport services, Nick Foa, said the proposal under development likely involves boomgates across Lydiard Street.

"We've heard loud and clear that the Ballarat community wants Lydiard Street open to traffic, so we are working on a plan to reopen Lydiard Street sooner," he said.

"We are developing a proposal to get this important thoroughfare open as quickly and safely as possible, and that is likely to include the installation of boom gates."

"We know that this is an issue close to the heart of the community and we'll continue to provide updates as things progress."

As soon as the plans are finalised, it's understood V/Line will "come back to stakeholders and the community".

V/Line's acting chief executive, Gary Liddle, said plans are being developed "as quickly as possible", that are "both safe and respectful of the precinct's significant heritage - and we're working with Heritage Victoria to progress the required permit as quickly as possible".

"We discussed the work that is being done to develop these plans with the City of Ballarat last night and we will continue to keep those lines of communication with our stakeholders open, as well as providing regular updates to the community," he said in a statement.

V/Line also reiterated there were no safety concerns with VLocity trains traveling through the crossing.

However, City of Ballarat councillor Samantha McIntosh said there needed to be reassurances that the heritage-style swing gates would eventually return in a permanent solution.

"It is not okay just because we've had the road closed off for a year that all of a sudden anyone thinks it's okay just to get rid of the gates just because we need the road open," she said.

"We do need the road open, we do need an interim solution, we do want Heritage Victoria working very closely with VicRoads and V/Line for an adequate solution - an adequate solution is reflecting the fact that the gates and mechanics are contributory to this heritage precinct, it means so much to the history of Ballarat.

"We need to fix the problems that are here, we need to look after our heritage, and we need to give our community, our ratepayers, access to a street they deserve to have access to."

Save Our Station president Gerald Jenzen said there is a "trust issue".

"I understand there's a preference to not have gates that block off the line, but there are exceptional circumstances that should give consideration to it because they are heritage gates, the only ones around," he said.

"They've already got the (replacement) gates, so what have we been waiting for, wasting a year, to get to this stage? For 20 years, these gates have operated satisfactorily."

It's understood Lovell Chen has been announced as the heritage consultants for the project.

Read the Department of Transport's full media response below.

PREVIOUSLY:

There's no timeline for reopening Lydiard Street yet, and we still don't know if there'll be heritage-style swing gates or boomgates.

City of Ballarat councillors met with representatives from the Department of Transport and V/Line on Wednesday night for what appeared to be a tense meeting.

Lydiard Street has been closed for 326 days after a V/Line passenger train with allegedly non-functional brakes smashed through the southern swing gates.

READ MORE:

We're no closer to finding out when the street will reopen.

City of Ballarat mayor Daniel Moloney said council was "frustrated" with the lack of action.

He confirmed a heritage consultant had been appointed, but no application had been made yet.

"I think it's great they're still meeting with us and talking with us, and have clearly now appointed a heritage consultant, but I think we're understating things to say we're still disappointed," he told The Courier on Thursday morning.

"There's no hint of a time frame or discussion about details for longer term solutions yet.

"V/Line discussed with us last night a potential temporary boomgate solution, and our concern with that is it could become a default permanent solution, and without adequate local consultation, it'd be the wrong way forward.

"V/Line indicated to us last night that their preference is to not have gates fixed across a railway line, so that does limit the opportunities for what can happen in the future.

"It's good V/Line's now considering an interim solution, which would be temporary boomgates, but it's unclear to us how long that temporary fix would take to put in place because it'd still require heritage approval."

The Department of Transport, V/Line, and Heritage Victoria have all been contacted for comment, and this story will be updated when we get a response.

Response from Dept of Transport, V/Line:

Quotes attributable to Nick Foa, Head of Transport Services, Department of Transport

"We've heard loud and clear that the Ballarat community wants Lydiard Street open to traffic, so we are working on a plan to reopen Lydiard Street sooner."

"We are developing a proposal to get this important thoroughfare open as quickly and safely as possible, and that is likely to include the installation of boom gates."

"We know that this is an issue close to the heart of the community and we'll continue to provide updates as things progress."

Quotes attributable to Gary Liddle, Acting Chief Executive Officer, V/Line

"We are also developing plans for a solution for the Lydiard Street level crossing as quickly as possible that is both safe and respectful of the precinct's significant heritage - and we're working with Heritage Victoria to progress the required permit as quickly as possible."

"We discussed the work that is being done to develop these plans with the City of Ballarat last night and we will continue to keep those lines of communication with our stakeholders open, as well as providing regular updates to the community."

Background

We are developing a proposal that will likely include automated boom gates - which will enable safe travel on rail and by road.

It is important to note that there are no safety concerns with VLocity trains travelling through the crossing.

We heard the community's feedback on how important it is to open Lydiard Street to traffic.

As soon as we have finalised these plans and approvals we will come back to stakeholders and the community.

MORE TO COME.

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