[COM] M2 Northern Connector | 15.5km | $867m

[drsmith]

Perth has two electrified railway lines within freeway medians as part of the suburban commuter rail network.

The Mitchell Freeway which contains the northern suburbs railway line within it's median was purpose built for the task. For much of the route cable barriers are used to seperate the road carridgeways from the railway lines in the centre median.

The recently completed southern suburbs railway to Mandurah runs down the centre median of the Kwinana Freeway. When initially built the Kwinana Freeway was not designed to acommodate a railway in the median. While a section of the freeway was rebuilt several years ago to widen the median for a future railway the only option closer to the city was to modify the existing bus lanes to take light rail. This section is quiet narrow and consequently rail and road traffic are seperated by concrete barriers. The biggest danger with these is to cars in the lanes adjacent to the barriers as these are very close to the lane itself with little allowed for driver error. The Northern Connector being a new rail/road corridor would not be restricted for space in this way.

[Ho Really]

Suburban (light) rail is one thing, heavy freight is another. I know that rail and road can be separated by walls, but the question of crossing of tracks for emergency access has to be answered.

Cheers

[monotonehell]

No offence, but just because someone else does it doesnt mean its always right.

True, but Perth isn't exactly a place of reckless abandon when it comes to safety. I can see concrete barriers between the tracks and the roadway there. That's something

[monotonehell]

Suburban (light) rail is one thing, heavy freight is another. I know that rail and road can be separated by walls, but the question of crossing of tracks for emergency access has to be answered.

Cheers

Not by us though. I'm sure when the final design is made it will address all we can think of and more.

[raulduke]

Good Morning,

I have lived here in Adelaide now for about three years, after moving from Perth. I would have to say that Adelaide has the most inadequate road network I have ever seen, why, why oh why, does this place described as a 'linear city' not have a freeway servicing the Northern suburbs. Instead, the two freeways service places nobody wants to go (please excuse the sarcasm, but come on). Further, what is the point if they stop well short of servicing the actual CBD.

[Shuz]

Hi raulduke, welcome to the forums. Had you taken the oppurtunity to read the forums a bit, there are actually two freeways proposed for the northern suburbs at this stage.

They will form a singular freeflowing route from Gawler to Port Adelaide, connecting with the already completed Port River Expressway.

The first of the two, is the Northern Expressway. It will bypass the outlying suburbs of the Playford district area (Elizabeth, Salisbury, Munno Para, etc) and connect with Port Wakefield Road, just north of Heaslip Road. It will meet up with the Gawler Bypass (which is already a freeway-standard connection of Main North Road and Sturt Highway).
Here is its thread - http://www.sensational-adelaide.com/for ... d&start=60

The second, which is currently undergoing review, is the Northern Connector.
This road will essentially, connect with the Northern Expressway at its interchange with Port Wakefield Road, and adjoin the Salisbury Highway/Port River Expressway just due west of the Port Wakefield/Salisbury highway interchange. It is also proposed to have a two-way freight train line running down its median, to redirect freight operations away from the suburbs.
http://www.sensational-adelaide.com/for ... f=9&t=1482

[raulduke]

I am still not convinced Shuz but appreciate the info nonetheless. It is the area around Regency Road that is the major problem. The freeway needs to continue to the city to have any real value, I am not interested in heavy transport efficiency, I want to get to work on time and the trains 'just aint cuttin it!'.

[Will409]

raulduke, a popular railfan joke is comparing TransAdelaide to TransPerth. There is only one simularity between the two and that is the word 'Trans'. Adelaide is nationally regarded as having the worst rail system in the country with nothing but delapidated stations, track that actually fails national rail safety standards and a diesel worked fleet ageing between 12 and 28 years old.

These issues are however not related to this thread and have been discussed elsewhere.

[raulduke]

Will409 - not to mention the state of the actual "stations" themselves compared to the ones in Perth, it certainly does not give one the impression that Adelaide is a twenty first century city.

[Ash-SV6]

I appreciate your fustration raulduke - the Northern Connector will only benefit those living north-west of Elizabeth and Main North Road, while everyone else in the northern suburbs have to continue to use Main North Road which from Gepps Cross to the Golden Grove Rd intersection is a disgrace - just 2 lanes, next to no street lighting and poor surface condition. And then there is our rail network but I obviously don't need to go there...!

But the Northern Connector itself isn't such a bad proposal, since something does need to be done about the amount of road freight using Angle Vale and Heaslip Roads. And I'm not sold on the idea of a freeway into the city itself, running around the city yes, and the best we can hope for with that is an upgrade of South Road (which is a bit anti-directional for people coming from the north I know, but is the only real affordable option).

[raulduke]

I dont agree that the South Road upgrade is affordable at all, how can we conceivably turn South Road into a non-stop through Road all the way to Gawler without it bankrupting the state. I cant understand why Port Road cant be used, the median for the most part is wider than South Road itself! This could link with the Port River expressway and your half way home.

[skyliner]

What a windfall!! Just found out that the big boss for the Northern freeway has a daughter living NEXT to us near Brisbane (85 km).. Will try and get what I can as she knows some things and he comes and visits her as well. Would like to access all publically available info and updates ahead of the media. It seems he gave up a lucrative mining job of the same scale at Prominent Hill to so this.

ADELAIDE - CITY ON THE MOVE

[roadkill]

As I live in the "proposed" corridor of the Northern Connector and am likely to lose my home of 30 years to it I wonder if any thought has been put into what actually will be lost if this connector goes ahead?
The so called vacant and low residential area of the western side of Pt Wakefield road along this stretch is that way for an important reason. It is part of the food bowl of the state. Market gardens abound. There is large volume and intensive micro farming of food crops in full production going on year round. This is prime market garden land and the market gardens are here, and have been here for over 1/2 a centuary, for that sole reason. I find the forced aquasition of more than 100 properties, the major % of them established market gardens, a huge concern.
Will there be an impact study done on the future of food production or lack of and its effect if we lose this prime market garden land to a layer of blacktop?

[bdm]

As I live in the "proposed" corridor of the Northern Connector and am likely to lose my home of 30 years to it I wonder if any thought has been put into what actually will be lost if this connector goes ahead?
The so called vacant and low residential area of the western side of Pt Wakefield road along this stretch is that way for an important reason. It is part of the food bowl of the state. Market gardens abound. There is large volume and intensive micro farming of food crops in full production going on year round. This is prime market garden land and the market gardens are here, and have been here for over 1/2 a centuary, for that sole reason. I find the forced aquasition of more than 100 properties, the major % of them established market gardens, a huge concern.
Will there be an impact study done on the future of food production or lack of and its effect if we lose this prime market garden land to a layer of blacktop?

If the land is of more value used as a highway than used as market gardens then it will become a highway. If, of course, the market gardens are more valuable, then the highway will not be built.

[Ho Really]

...It is the area around Regency Road that is the major problem. The freeway needs to continue to the city to have any real value, I am not interested in heavy transport efficiency, I want to get to work on time and the trains 'just aint cuttin it!'.

The land was there available, but unfortunately the MATS Plan which had some solutions to the current problem was scrapped. If we had to do it now there would have to be a lot of land acquired and the relocation of some industry. We missed the boat...

Cheers

P.S. I still believe the freeway proposed could reach Regency Road without affecting residential areas. See above.