Anti-tagging cash from state coffers

Casey Mayor Sam Aziz with soon-to-be-removed graffiti on the Monash Freeway sound wall. 149591 Picture: ROB CAREW

By ANEEKA SIMONIS

A GRAFFITI targeted stretch of the Monash Freeway will be cleaned up with a huge cash injection delivered under the State Budget.
The heavily tagged sound wall between Pakenham and CityLink will soon be vandalism free, thanks to an additional $300,000 for graffiti removal works.
The 65-kilometrre stretch of tagged wall is a source of huge frustration for up to 200,000 motorists that use that section of the Monash Freeway each day.
Minister for Roads Luke Donnellan said the new graffiti removal effort is supplemented by other state-funded projects to prevent vandals from accessing the site in the first place.
“We’ve listened to local residents in Casey, and we’re providing additional funding to ensure there is an even greater capacity to remove and prevent graffiti vandalism along the Monash,” he said.
“We’re also looking at proactive measures like fencing and plantation, to stop vandals from getting access in the first place.”
The funding announcement comes after Casey Council launched an online petition to tackle tagging across the municipality.
The Clean Up Your Act campaign urged residents to sign the petition requesting the State Government to prioritise removing tags that plague VicRoads’ controlled signage and noise barriers along the Monash Freeway (Hallam Bypass) and railway bridges controlled by VicTrack.
Each signature was automatically sent to Mr Donnellan and Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allen.
Acting Metro South East regional director at VicRoads Vince Punaro said graffiti which was deemed offensive got “prioritised depending on its size and location on the road network, against other maintenance activities”.
Last year, a total of 22,000m2; of graffiti was removed from the Monash Freeway by VicRoads.