The economic case for the East West Link could be shakier than first thought, with the government’s own modelling work suggesting the benefits could be overshadowed by towering costs.

It comes as Melbourne City Council on Tuesday night considers voting to strengthen its objection to the East West Link’s impact on the Moonee Ponds Creek and parts of Kensington.

An internal assessment of the project undertaken in March 2013 is understood to have examined nine options for the road link.

Even the cheapest but most destructive scenario - building the road by bulldozing a path “at grade” through Carlton and Fitzroy - failed to produce a positive return, suggesting the state would recoup just 73¢ for every $1 spent, excluding ''wider economic benefits'' from the analysis.

The situation was even worse under a high-cost scenario involving maximum tunnelling, with the calculations suggesting Victoria would claw back just 45¢ for every $1 spent.