[U/C] M2 North-South Motorway

[rubberman]

If you are headed to the city or north western/western/southern suburbs..why would you stay on Port Wakefield road and put up with delays at traffic lights and idiots trying to merge, when you can get on the north-south freeway and not worry about any of that?

While I agree with you totally about what a rational person might answer to those questions, there is a whole demographic of people out there who put up with low cost carriers merely because they are cheaper. Fair enough, they have their reasons.

I should imagine those people who are prepared to put up with what low cost carriers are prepared to dole out, just to save a few dollars, would have no problem in putting up with the traffic lights and delays to save a few more dollars.

Thus, in the same way that low cost carriers have their users compared to a full cost carrier, so too would Port Wakefield road compared to a tolled freeway..

[drsmith]

If a freight toll solution is adopted under the same federal government model as for Perth Freight Link in WA, the toll will extend well beyond the Northern Connector itself. The toll for Perth Freight Link will apply to the entire freight route from north of the Perth metro (Muchea) area to where PFL will end near Freo inner harbour. That freight route though in total is having close to $4bn spent on it and when complete will effectively create an expressway route from Muchea to Freo.

I also note that in the north/south plan released last week that the Northern Connector is still listed as a 2-stage project.

[rev]

If you are headed to the city or north western/western/southern suburbs..why would you stay on Port Wakefield road and put up with delays at traffic lights and idiots trying to merge, when you can get on the north-south freeway and not worry about any of that?

While I agree with you totally about what a rational person might answer to those questions, there is a whole demographic of people out there who put up with low cost carriers merely because they are cheaper. Fair enough, they have their reasons.

I should imagine those people who are prepared to put up with what low cost carriers are prepared to dole out, just to save a few dollars, would have no problem in putting up with the traffic lights and delays to save a few more dollars.

Thus, in the same way that low cost carriers have their users compared to a full cost carrier, so too would Port Wakefield road compared to a tolled freeway..

Is part of this post a reference to something else?
I'm on to you

[drsmith]

Apologies if this has been noted before but the Darlington project has undergone another redesign,

http://www.infrastructure.sa.gov.au/sou ... ge_gallery

http://www.infrastructure.sa.gov.au/__d ... ade_A1.pdf

From late March,



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eTz1u5PfUo

[drsmith]

Having reviewed the recently released NS Corridor strategy, the following really stood out.

Grade separation of the rail line from the existing Cross/South Road intersection will cost a whopping $280m in 2014 dollars (page 57).

Under the various construction priorities shown, the earliest the Northern Connector will be completed is the end of 2022 and the latest early 2030. The cost of the Northern Connector is now listed as $820m (2014$). The following listed this as a $1.1bn project showing how much the cost of this sort of construction has fallen since the mining construction boom has ended.

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/messenger ... 6754039823

WA has also experienced a significant fall in the cost of road projects and many as a consequence have had their scope expanded.

Back to the NS corridor strategy, I'm not sure what they want to do next after T2T and Darlington. It's probably not worth getting too hung up over that as it will most likely be the politicians that will decide.

http://www.infrastructure.sa.gov.au/__d ... rategy.pdf

[[Shuz]]

There's a cute little story in the Advertiser this morning about how the plan was released too early, and that the Infrastructre head at DPTI was still working on it but Kouts used his ministerial discretion to release it.

What a joke.

[drsmith]

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/sout ... 7372025705

IIRC, the federal government was prepared to offer money for the Northern Connector under a freight toll funding model similar to Perth Freight Link in WA but the SA state government rejected it. If following the WA model, the toll would have been broader than the Northern Connector and would have likely included the Northern Expressway and Superway.

The funding for WA's Perth Freight Link hasn't gone quiet to plan with the state government having to increase its funding component due to lack of private sector interest in that component of the funding. Even if it had initially agreed, the SA government may not have been too keen on that. The WA state government now hopes to sell the freight toll income stream to the private sector some time after construction. The WA state government also has the added incentive in that Perth Freight Link will help to support the value of the Fremantle inner harbor, an asset it's now looking to sell.

The tragedy for SA is that the Northern Connector overall is more shovel ready than Perth Freight Link (PFL). For the western section of PFL, the route is not yet decided but the planning race is on to enable construction of that section to start late next year. Planning for the eastern section (Roe8) is far more advanced with construction expected to start on that early next year.

Had the SA government been more accepting of the federal government's suggestion, construction of the Northern Connector could have potentially been under way late next year or in 2017. I note though that from last weeks report that fill over the Dry Creek salt pans would require a year to settle before road construction of that section could even begin.

AS it is, Adelaide will shortly have two large road projects under simultaneous construction.

[rhino]

Adelaide will shortly have two large road projects under simultaneous construction.

Done that before - Bakewell Underpass and Gallipoli Underpass were under construction at the same time, though construction was more overlapping rather than simultaneous, I admit.

[rev]

Adelaide will shortly have two large road projects under simultaneous construction.

Done that before - Bakewell Underpass and Gallipoli Underpass were under construction at the same time, though construction was more overlapping rather than simultaneous, I admit.

Darlington and Torrens to Torrens are significantly more larger and major then two underpasses.

[bits]

Having reviewed the recently released NS Corridor strategy, the following really stood out.

Grade separation of the rail line from the existing Cross/South Road intersection will cost a whopping $280m in 2014 dollars (page 57).

....

http://www.infrastructure.sa.gov.au/__d ... rategy.pdf

For me what stood out is the Direk Intermodal (proposed) on Page 3.
Is that the Holden site?

[fifty]

Is it just me or was it already known that the designed speed rating would only be 80kmph? A bit disappointed by this. What is it in the design that is preventing 100?

[bits]

Is it just me or was it already known that the designed speed rating would only be 80kmph? A bit disappointed by this. What is it in the design that is preventing 100?

Noise and consistent merging/exiting of traffic?
There is never going to be a long run highway without merging/exiting traffic.

Oh also maybe minimal shoulder room. The trench walls appear to be fairly close to the road traffic.

[claybro]

Internationally, and within Australia the standard speed limit within tunnels is 80km/h. This even goes for Autobahans in Europe. This section of South Road being in a trench, is basically a tunnel without a roof, so 80km/h would be to be expected.

[Tonsley213]

Internationally, and within Australia the standard speed limit within tunnels is 80km/h. This even goes for Autobahans in Europe. This section of South Road being in a trench, is basically a tunnel without a roof, so 80km/h would be to be expected.

The expected volume of traffic would also bring the speed down in the ausroads guide to road design.

[rhino]

Internationally, and within Australia the standard speed limit within tunnels is 80km/h. This even goes for Autobahans in Europe. This section of South Road being in a trench, is basically a tunnel without a roof, so 80km/h would be to be expected.

Speed limit through the Heysen Tunnels, which have a broad curve in them that you can't see around, is 90kph.

That said, I have no problem with an 80kph limit between Darlington and the Superway. It's what, 17km or something? at 80kph that will take 11.5 minutes. I'm fine with that.