Inadequate drainage

Residents have complained about the continuous flooding issue at the underpass on the corner of Wurundjeri Way and Dudley St.

NewQuay resident Tim Chan said heavy rain would often cause flooding at the underpass, damaging cars and closing off roads.

He said after a storm on November 17, a car was stuck at the underpass and three of the four lanes going into Docklands Drive were unusable due to flooding.

“It’s annoying to see that the infrastructure in Melbourne isn’t coping with the weather conditions,” he said. “Seems like the drainage system isn’t well-planned for the sudden amount of rain that comes and goes.”

A small layer of water would be formed from very little rain and it would take from up to two hours for it to drain away, Mr Chan said.

The City of Melbourne acknowledged Dudley St, managed by VicRoads, often experienced short-term flooding due to an out-dated drainage system, despite upgrade works in 2011.

Three pumps built during the early development of Docklands discharge stormwater to Moonee Ponds Creek.

A council spokesperson said the Dudley St underpass was the lowest point of a densely developed 124 hectare catchment area, hence water could easily accumulate at the location.

“This low gradient means that storm water from the low point in Dudley St flows at a slower rate towards the pump station located at the end of Docklands Drive. During intense storm events this causes the storm water to back up.”

“Tidal storm surges in Moonee Ponds Creek also contribute to localised flooding around the Dudley St underpass,” the council spokesperson said.

Fatima Mahamed, VicRoads’ metro north west operations director, said: “The Dudley St underpass often floods following heavy rain, but we monitor it closely and respond by closing the road when necessary.” 

“It’s important that everyone on the roads takes extreme care during and following heavy rain and this includes not walking, riding or driving through flood waters.”