Project Overview
Mullum-Mullum Road Ringwood | Ringwood, Victoria
From January 2026 to May 2026, Maroondah City Council undertook a road and pedestrian safety improvement project on Mullum Mullum Road, an area experiencing speeding concerns, pedestrian safety issues and congestion.
The project aimed to reduce vehicle speeds, improve pedestrian safety and accessibility, provide bus stop enhancements, clarify parking and traffic lane arrangements, and improve the overall experience for people travelling through the area.
One of the engineers working on the project was Colin McLeod, Chair of Young IPWA Victoria. For Colin, he started by asking: “What outcomes are we trying to achieve and what improvements are we providing to the community?” Rather than treating individual infrastructure elements in isolation, the project focused on ensuring each treatment contributed to the broader safety and accessibility objectives.
Colin said: “I can be handed over a design and build a roundabout, a raised pavement, or a new drainage line, but will they meet their intention? To deliver the best outcomes for a project, I like to start by understanding the reasons we’re undertaking a project and what we’re seeking as the outcome.”
Project Process and Highlights
The project began by identifying the key issues affecting the area. Community feedback raised concerns about vehicle speeds. This was supported by a review of available crash data and speed counts, which showed that 85% of vehicles were above the speed limit of 60km/h.
With nearby schools in a local residential area, the project focussed on reducing vehicle speeds through infrastructure, rather than relying on the need for continual speed enforcements.
The team started by reducing the width of the road through the installation of kerb outstands and indented parking, which improved the through flow for two-way traffic at minimum lane widths. In addition, raised pavements were installed including one at the relocated school crossing to improve pedestrian accessibility and visibility, and the bus stop became an on-road bus stop, which supported safer and more efficient public transport operations.
The project provided an opportunity to coordinate several improvements within a single works program, and so road resurfacing was also undertaken to improve the condition of the road and reduce the need for future disruption.
Outcomes and Benefits
The project has delivered improved pedestrian facilities and a safer, more accessible environment around the school and residential area. Since the project has only recently been completed in May 2026, it is too early to measure overall outcomes. However, we can visually see speeds have reduced in the area. If necessary, future monitoring could be undertaken to determine whether the intended outcomes have been achieved.
A key lesson from the project was the importance of early engagement with external stakeholders. As the works involved modifying a bus stop and route, earlier engagement with the relevant transport authority could have allowed associated requirements, including shelter relocation and path works, to be incorporated more efficiently into the construction program.
The project also highlighted the value of conducting a detailed pre-works site meeting with the contractor. Discussing construction methodology, potential conflicts and local site knowledge before works commenced helped identify issues that may otherwise have been overlooked.
Overall, the project demonstrates how relatively targeted infrastructure treatments can be combined to address multiple safety, accessibility and traffic management issues while delivering broader benefits for the community.