Major Infrastructure Projects
A new road and rail connector in the North
The new Northern Connector will run to the west of the existing Port Wakefield Road. This innovative combination of road and rail services - within one corridor - would deliver clear benefits to the local community, industry, everyday commuters and the national transport network.
It would also deliver a long-term strategic link between the Northern Expressway and the Port of Adelaide while improving the safety and efficiency of the state and national transport network.
This new road and rail corridor will significantly reduce congestion on the existing Port Wakefield Road. It will provide an expressway standard road from the Port of Adelaide to numerous regional destinations to the east and north of Adelaide. For example, a 70-kilometre trip from the Barossa Valley to the Port of Adelaide would include 47 kilometres of expressway standard road with minimal traffic light interruptions.
Local communities alongside the existing Port Wakefield Road would benefit from better management of traffic volumes. And therefore would assist in the development of business precincts in this growing region, all the while maintaining direct links to high quality transport infrastructure and services.
The Northern Connector also offers increased road safety and subsequently a better quality of life for communities living adjacent to the national east-west freight rail line.
A critical step in investigating the feasibility of the Northern Connector is the completion of a planning study. This planning study will reveal how the Northern Connector contributes to the objectives of the Australian Government's Land Transport Investment Program.
In the broader context, the planning study should be seen as part of an overall review of a north to south Adelaide transport strategy. A strategy aimed at achieving smoother and faster connections for people travelling via the upgraded Sturt Highway to South Road and ultimately along a future North - South corridor towards Darlington and the Southern Expressway.
The area to the west of Port Wakefield Road was identified as a preferred study area. This is primarily due to significant development and residential areas located on the eastern side. On the western side development is generally less dense, comprising a mix of agricultural, horticultural, recreational, residential and industrial land uses.
Northern Expressway
The Northern Expressway Project consists of two components: the new Northern Expressway and the Port Wakefield Road Upgrade. The 23-kilometre long Northern Expressway will include a pedestrian and cycle pathway - approximately three kilometres north of the Waterloo Corner Road intersection - linking the Gawler bypass with Port Wakefield road.
To meet the demand of increased traffic volumes generated by the new expressway, Port Wakefield Road is being upgraded at key areas between its intersection with the Northern Expressway and Salisbury Highway.
The Northern Expressway project is a joint initiative by the Australian and South Australian governments under the Australian Government's Land Transport Investment Program. It will be the largest road construction project in the state since the 1960s.
ResourceCo has signed schedule of rates to supply pavement materials to this project.
South Road Corridor
The State Government has announced the first stage of a plan to transform South Road into a continuous non-stop route from the Southern Expressway to the Port River Expressway - a distance of 22 kilometres.
The first stages include:
- Construction of an underpass at the South Road and Anzac Highway intersection
- Reconstruction of South Road with a series of underpasses taking the road under Grange and Port roads and the Outer Harbor rail line
- Widening South Road between Port and Torrens roads.
An upgrade at these bottlenecks will reduce congestion and improve safety along South Road - Adelaide's busiest and most critical main arterial freight route.
ResourceCo is bidding to supply other stages as they come on line.
Coast to Coast Light Rail - City West to Adelaide Entertainment Centre
In this year's State Budget the Government announced the biggest single investment ever in Adelaide's public transport system. This investment will deliver initiatives to transform Adelaide's network into a vibrant, state of the art system, providing faster, cleaner, more frequent and efficient services for train, tram and bus commuters.
As part of this plan to revitalise the public transport network, the highly successful tramline extension will be further developed to provide a coast to coast service, running from Glenelg through the city, to West Lakes and through the heart of Port Adelaide through to Semaphore. ResourceCo may receive waste from this project and may supply some of the road base.
The first step in improving tram services in Adelaide was the Victoria Square to City West tramline extension. The next step is to take the tramline another 2.5 km along North Terrace onto Port Road to the Adelaide Entertainment Centre before linking it with the Outer Harbor rail line. A 'park and ride' facility will also be provided using the existing Adelaide Entertainment Centre car park, with the centre itself to receive a $50 million makeover.
The exact alignment of the tram corridor is yet to be determined and will be based on engineering, geotechnical, vegetation, environmental, access, traffic and other relevant investigations that will continue in coming months.
Consultation with a wide range of stakeholders including local businesses, residents and community facilities, key industry groups, local government, State Government agencies, public transport commuters and the general public will be undertaken as part of this project.
Feedback received will be used to identify issues of concern and interest, in addition to informing the design process.
Opportunities to make formal comment will be widely publicised as the project moves forward. However, you can make a comment or enquiry at any time by contacting the Project Information line on 1800 726 500.
Belair Rail Line Upgrade
As part of the Rail Revitalisation initiative, the Belair line will be significantly upgraded, which essentially involves replacing the existing track with new infrastructure including:
- Upgrading the track formation (base-layer)
- Improving stormwater drainage
- Installing new long-life, gauge convertible concrete sleepers.
Renewal of the Belair Line will provide reliable and more comfortable services for commuters well into the future.
The upgrade will use 'gauge - convertible' concrete sleepers so the track can be converted from broad gauge (1600mm wide tracks) to standard gauge (1435 mm wide tracks) at a later date in coordination with this change across the whole metropolitan rail network.
Major construction works for renewal of the Belair line (between Goodwood and Belair) are expected to commence in early 2009. This first stage of the track upgrade is due for completion in mid 2009.
It is anticipated that the Southern Lines and Gawler Line will be up graded to enable the introduction of Electric Rail by 2011.
ResourceCo are currently part of a consortium that is bidding to do this project. If successful we will process approx 60k tonnes of ballast at $30 per tonne.
Desal Plant
The construction of the Desal plant on the former Mobil Refinery will supply Adelaide with 25% of its water usage.
| A new road and rail connector in the North | $100M |
| Northern Expressway | $400M |
| South Road Corridor | $100M |
| Sturt Highway up grade | $160M |
| Coast to Coast Light Rail - City West to Adelaide Entertainment Centre. |
$40M |
| Belair Rail Line Upgrade | $20M |
| DESAL PLANT | $1.2B |
