Traffic chaos as rail gates jam up

FAULTY rail signalling caused early-morning traffic chaos for thousands of drivers from Cranbourne and its surrounds on Wednesday.
Boom gates and train services were closed for more than an hour between Dandenong and Cranbourne from about 6.15am.
A VicRoads spokesman said there were significant traffic hold-ups on the South Gippsland Highway between Thompsons Road and the Dandenong Bypass as a result of a signalling fault on the Cranbourne rail line.
There were also long delays for drivers around boom gates on Abbotts and Greens roads.
The fault was repaired about 7.45am.
Metro Trains cancelled services and ordered replacement buses for the Cranbourne line up until about 8am.
It advised commuters to catch trains from Hallam station on the Pakenham line.
A Metro Trains spokeswoman said the cause of the fault was yet to be determined.
She hypothesised that overnight storms “wouldn’t have helped”.
One silver lining was that inbound Monash Freeway traffic seemed to flow more freely than usual.