The Napthine government is heading to an election with its key priorities in doubt, as most voters remain unconvinced about the east-west link and more than a quarter say public safety is getting worse.

Despite countless hours and millions of dollars spent marketing the $8 billion road project, the latest Age/Nielsen poll has found that only one in four Victorians believe the tunnel should be the highest infrastructure priority to ease congestion and improve liveability.

Instead, most people want the government to build the Metro Rail Capacity Project - a nine-kilometre underground train line through the city that would allow another 20,000 passengers to use the network during peak hour.

With eight months before election day, the poll is an ominous sign for the Coalition, which is trailing Labor on a two-party preferred basis as it struggles to control a chaotic Parliament, deal with thousands of job losses and fight a bitter industrial battle with paramedics.