A $75 million extension of the Marshall Liberal Government’s successful Managed Motorways System will see the end of frustrating traffic queues on the South Eastern Freeway when a crash occurs or heavy vehicles breakdown.
The Marshall Liberal Government has committed $15 million to the project and will now seek funding from the Federal Government to secure the remainder to bust congestion on the freeway and get motorists home quicker and safer.
The Managed Motorway Project is a crucial initiative to improve safety and traffic flow on the South Eastern Freeway between Crafers and Stirling.
Stage Two of the project – between the Tollgate and Stirling – will see the installation of a Movable Centre Barrier System. In the event of a crash or breakdown, barriers can be quickly shifted to create an extra lane to ease traffic congestion and avoid dreaded delays.
An engineering study has been commissioned and has already identified a possible solution for moveable barriers that can operate in a freeway environment. This type of technology does not currently exist on the South Eastern Freeway
Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Corey Wingard, said motorists – approximately 54,000 each day – who use the SE Freeway are all familiar with the frustration caused by crashes and breakdowns.
“We’ve already seen the benefits the $17.2 million Managed Motorways System between Crafers and Stirling has delivered for motorists in the Adelaide Hills,” Minister Wingard said.
“By extending it between the Tollgate and Stirling, we’re ensuring traffic will be able to flow smoothly should an incident occur.
“This project will also stabilise motorway speeds during periods of high demand and reduce driver frustration to get people home sooner and safer.”
The project will also see the implementation of an Intelligent Transport Systems which includes gantries with cameras, sensing equipment, dynamic signage and an upgrade of Traffic Management Centre systems.
The announcement follows the release of Infrastructure South Australia’s Mount Barker Mass Transit Study which found that passenger rail to the Hills would not meet the needs of consumers because it would take more than 70 minutes to travel between Adelaide and Mt Barker.
“The report highlighted the journey time would be far too long and to deliver it would be far too expensive,” Minister Wingard said.
“Instead, ISA has made a series of recommendations including offering more convenient public transport, investing in Park ‘n’ Ride facilities, improving incident response on the freeway and bus priority options.
“We’re already looking into delivering a Rapid Bus Transit route, we’ve now allocated funding to extend the Managed Motorways System and we’re also committed to identifying a long-term solution.
“The former Labor government did absolutely nothing to address these issues, and in fact they caused them by failing to properly plan for significant growth in the Mt Barker region.
“Once again we’re cleaning up their mess and we’re doing our best to undo the damage they’ve caused.”
