COM: Sturt Highway Upgrade | $159m

[Norman]

Just thought we should start a topic on this.

The blurb from the DTEI website:

The Australian Government is providing significant funding for the upgrade of the Sturt Highway, between Gawler and Nuriootpa.

This upgrade forms part of the $159.2 million Sturt Highway Upgrade which will improve transport efficiency and safety between Adelaide and the Riverland.

A priority of the upgrade is to improve safety for all road users. The project balances local access needs with the efficiency demands of a major highway forming part of the AusLink National Network.

The department is managing this upgrade, which includes:
-duplication of the highway between Gawler and Seppeltsfield Road to become two lanes in each direction separated by a central median
-improvements to the Murray Street and Belvidere Road junctions
-extension of the existing overtaking lane adjacent Moppa Road to meet with the Old Kapunda Road junction.

Once complete, the Sturt Highway between Gawler and Nuriootpa will:
-improve safety for all road users
-maintain access and connectivity for the local community and industry
-improve freight efficiency through a more effective connection with port and rail facilities at the Port of Adelaide
-reduce delays during peak travel times
-improve national and inter-regional connectivity
-remain a controlled access road.

The department has been engaging landowners, stakeholders and wider community in the planning process and is balancing their needs with the engineering, environmental and social requirements of the upgrade.

The upgrade is being undertaken in stages and is scheduled for completion by December 2009.

The Map:

Credit: DTEI SA

Gawler Interchange Duplication (Artists Impressions):

Credit: DTEI SA

Website:
http://www.dtei.sa.gov.au/infrastructur ... ntent.html

[Norman]

Some pics of the Gawler Interchange from today:

Existing Bridge Upgrades:








New Exit from Gawler Bypass/Future Northern Expressway:




Land where the new bridge will go:

[Düsseldorfer]

Here's an idea! Why not make the whole length of the Sturt highway from Adelaide to Mildura and Wagga Wagga an actual highway with 2-3 lanes each direction...the current road between Gawler and the Hume Highway is rather sheit.

[Norman]

Here's an idea! Why not make the whole length of the Sturt highway from Adelaide to Mildura and Wagga Wagga an actual highway with 2-3 lanes each direction...the current road between Gawler and the Hume Highway is rather sheit.

I guess the Hume Highway is more important for now. Even there some sections are still 1 lane in each direction, so the Sturt Highway is lower in the priority list. The Adelaide-Melbourne Highway is next of course, only Melbourne-Bordertown though.

[Düsseldorfer]

Here's an idea! Why not make the whole length of the Sturt highway from Adelaide to Mildura and Wagga Wagga an actual highway with 2-3 lanes each direction...the current road between Gawler and the Hume Highway is rather sheit.

I guess the Hume Highway is more important for now. Even there some sections are still 1 lane in each direction, so the Sturt Highway is lower in the priority list. The Adelaide-Melbourne Highway is next of course, only Melbourne-Bordertown though.

I just think it would be great to have freeway standard roads between all major cities (yep, i miss the Autobahns in Germany, lol). Hopefully once the Hume Hwy is a finished then we'll see more progress on the other inter-city highways...

[AtD]

I guess the Hume Highway is more important for now. Even there some sections are still 1 lane in each direction, so the Sturt Highway is lower in the priority list. The Adelaide-Melbourne Highway is next of course, only Melbourne-Bordertown though.

The Hume is being duplicated as we speak.

[Norman]

I guess the Hume Highway is more important for now. Even there some sections are still 1 lane in each direction, so the Sturt Highway is lower in the priority list. The Adelaide-Melbourne Highway is next of course, only Melbourne-Bordertown though.

The Hume is being duplicated as we speak.

Yeah, and the Albury Bypass is great (although I preferred the City drive-through, the bypass feels too artificial and boring to me).

But up until recently, most of it on the Albury to Gundagai section was still single-lane. It is getting duplicated now, but only because it is the top priority in the country.

[Cruise]

Here's an idea! Why not make the whole length of the Sturt highway from Adelaide to Mildura and Wagga Wagga an actual highway with 2-3 lanes each direction...the current road between Gawler and the Hume Highway is rather sheit.

I guess the Hume Highway is more important for now. Even there some sections are still 1 lane in each direction, so the Sturt Highway is lower in the priority list. The Adelaide-Melbourne Highway is next of course, only Melbourne-Bordertown though.

I just think it would be great to have freeway standard roads between all major cities (yep, i miss the Autobahns in Germany, lol). Hopefully once the Hume Hwy is a finished then we'll see more progress on the other inter-city highways...

like a duplication of the road between Perth and Adelaide?

[urban]

Even as the Sturt Highway upgrade is underway there are more properties being opened directly onto the highway undermining the efficiency of the road network. Failure to curb such development will necessitate a bypass rd as we are seeing now with Pt Wakefield Rd. More of our taxpayer's money will be wasted.

[Norman]

Video driving through the upgrade section at the Main North Road overpass.

[Norman]

Driving along the works on the Sturt Highway. Part of the duplicated section will open soon, at the latest early next year.




Also a few photos:

[crawf]

Thanks Norm!

[drwaddles]

Love the photos Norman

[mattblack]

Went passed the roadworks the other day. The whole of the new road has been sealed, just the truckstops and the turn around bays to go. They had also diverted the traffic onto some of the new section with upgrades to the old road taking place. Im thinking they're well ahead of schedule on this one, end of '09 seems excessive.

[drsmith]

The full length of the new carriageway is open with rehabilitation works continuing on the old carriageway in the middle section of the project. On a couple of sections of the old carriageway the roadbase is being removed to some depth and relaid prior to being resealed. There is also some drainage works across the old carriageway.