Construction has begun on the access ramps for the service station — one of two planned for the tollway between Wellington and Ferntree Gully roads.

The north-bound centre will be open by Christmas and a south-bound centre is scheduled to open before Easter.

They are expected to create hundreds of new jobs. The works will also impose a temporary 80km/h speed limit on the tollway’s north-bound side.

The left-hand emergency lane will be closed and protected by barriers, but the three other lanes will remain open to traffic.

Linking Melbourne Authority, which delivered the EastLink project, announced the two service stations in June last year.

The authority’s chief executive officer Ken Mathers said the opening of EastLink meant motorists could travel from the beginning of the Eastern Freeway in Abbotsford to Frankston without any opportunities to rest and refresh along the way.

‘‘The service centres will be an important road safety tool against driver fatigue,’’ he said.

The works will also include a new bridge over Dandenong Creek, and a cycling and walking path to connect into the EastLink trail. Victorian company AA Holdings is building the two centres at a cost of more than $35 million. Managing director Andreas

Adrianopolous said the company was extremely proud of the service centres it was creating.

‘‘They will generate new employment opportunities for local people with the creation of up to 400 permanent and ongoing full and part-time jobs upon completion.’’