The 1.6km-long parallel Mullum Mullum and Melba tunnels enable vehicles up to 4.65m in height to pass under the Mullum Mullum Valley without affecting the wildlife and sensitive landscape. Each of the tunnels, at the northern end of EastLink (M3) in Melbourne's eastern suburbs, consists of three traffic lanes. They run up to 53m under Mullum Mullum Park in the suburb of Donvale.
The tunnels were recently closed to traffic during the four nights of upgrade work. Around 60 technicians using 22 scissor lifts exchanged 1,066 high-pressure sodium lights for 1,174 new LED lights from Lumitex, an Australian manufacturer based near Perth in the Australian state of Western Australia.
A spokesperson for EastLink noted that the four overnight tunnel operations were conducted during Melbourne’s fourth COVID-19 lockdown. That meant that the traffic affected by the closures - and foregone tolls - was much less than originally anticipated.
As prime contractor for the A$1.5 million (US$1.16 million) project, Lumitex supplied the lights while sub-contracting installation to Keece Electrical Services as well as design and pre- and and post-implementation testing to Powerplant.
The EastLink spokesperson said that prior to the project, there was a trial process of multiple vendors and LED products that included trial installations within the tunnels. This cost an additional A$300,000 (US$231,300) and led to Lumitex and its anL4D series being chosen as the preferred product.
EastLink said the new LED lights – the L4D series from Lumitex - are whiter and brighter than the old sodium lights, making passage through the tunnels easier and safer for drivers. Also, there is enhanced image quality in CCTV footage; emergency workers and incident response units in the tunnel are now operating in light that allows for greater natural vision of colours. For example, if a motorist is injured in a vehicle collision, attending paramedics will find that the new brighter, whiter lighting will assist with their treatment of the injured person.Should there be a vehicle fire, Fire Rescue Victoria will have a brighter environment in which to operate their equipment.
Environmentally, the new lights consume around 26% less energy which will cut greenhouse gas emissions by around 469 tonnes per year, according to EastLink. The old lights will be recycled by an accredited specialist recycler.
