Dungog Shire Council is set to commence work in mid-October to reconstruct Mary Carlton’s Bridge, under a $16.44M NSW Government Fixing Country Bridges grant council received earlier this year to replace 23 of its 24 timber bridges across the shire.
Council secured just over $650K in funding to replace the ageing Mary Carlton’s Bridge, in a bid to improve resilience to natural disasters and more safely connect surrounding communities.
Mayor of Dungog, Councillor John Connors, says this bridge replacement is an important aspect of Dungog’s infrastructure upgrade program and thanks residents in advance for their patience and cooperation during this process.
“The $16.44M Fixing Country Bridges grant to replace 23 of our timber bridges is undoubtedly helping us to achieve our goal of upgrading ageing infrastructure assets across the shire,” says Mayor Connors.
“We understand that these upgrades may cause some inconvenience for local residents for the duration of these works and we greatly appreciate their patience and cooperation while these critical upgrades are undertaken.”
General Manager Gareth Curtis, says replacement of Mary Carlton’s bridge will cause some short-term disruption to local services, but will ultimately delivers countless benefits for all road users.
“Due to the bridge’s location on Glen Williams Road at Unwarrabin Creek, there will be some disruptions to local services in the short term, to enable us to carry out works that will deliver a safer, more efficient access point for all road users in this area and across the region,” says Mr Curtis.
“Council has been in contact with local bus services and residents who will be directly impacted by these works and we have developed a Traffic Control Plan that best meets the needs of all parties during the construction period.”
Glen Williams Road will be closed at:
- Glen Williams Road and Pine Brush Road Intersection (local residents will be able to travel past this point to their property only);
- Glen Williams Road and Clarence Town Road Intersection (local residents will be able to travel past this point to their property only); and
- There will be no access past the Mary Carlton’s Bridge site for the duration of these works.
Detours will be via:
- Glen Williams Road, Duke Street and Clarence Town Road;
- Glen Williams Road, Pine Brush Road, and left onto Alison Road, Clarence Town Road (note this route is over Thalaba Bridge and load limited to 5 tonnes); and
- Glen Williams Road, Pine Brush Road, then right onto Alison Road, Stroud Hill Road (North of Dungog).
Traffic Control will be in place for the duration of these works. Council’s Traffic Control Plan confirms the following road closures and detours for the duration of the works (See link below).
The Traffic Control Plan also highlights the Shelton’s Bus Service that uses Glen Williams Road to transfer school students from Clarence Town to Dungog, will need to travel up Glen Williams Road to Glen Williams School, then turn around and travel back to Clarence Town, and take Duke Street and Clarence Town Road to Dungog.
The Mary Carlton’s Bridge replacement is currently scheduled to commence on Friday 15 October and is expected to be completed by the end of February 2022.
Signage will be in place to advise of the changed traffic conditions for the duration of these works. Council asks all road users to take extra care when traveling through this area and thanks all residents and road users for their patience and cooperation while these critical infrastructure works are completed.
Fixing Country Bridges is a $500 million NSW Government program helping local councils to replace hundreds of timber bridges in poor condition and better connect regional and rural communities across the state.
