Vic Traffic has confirmed the West Gate Freeway has been reopened and all lanes are now clear.

This morning climate protesting group, Extinction Rebellion, blocked three lanes of the West Gate Bridge using a Budget semi-truck, holding up traffic and leading to congestion.

Protesters were seen climbing onto the roof of the truck, revealing signed posters with messages such as, “declare a climate emergency” and “climate breakdown has begun”. 

Extinction Rebellion is an environmental movement aiming to pressure the government to address the climate crisis through immediate action. 

Activists from the group caused hour-long delays during peak-hour traffic.

Police arrested three protesters after they were safely removed from the roof of the truck. The blocked lanes were reopened about two hours after the disruption began.

The West Gate Freeway is one of Melbourne’s busiest Freeways and is travelled by more than 160,000 vehicles a day reported by Road Traffic.

Photo: Extinction Rebellion: Princes Bridge (Melbourne) Pram Action by Matt Hrkac available HERE and used under a Creative Commons license. This photo has not been modified.