Heathcote Road - six month closure for bridge upgrade

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Brendan Terrett

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May 24, 2020, 8:39:46 PM5/24/20
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https://www.rms.nsw.gov.au/projects/01documents/heathcote-road-bridge/heathcote-bridge-project-update-2020-05.pdf

TfNSW is proposing a full closure of Heathcote Road between Lucas Heights and Heathcote for six months to upgrade the bridge over the Woronora River.

I suppose the Bangor Bypass will carry the A6 (or D6) route during the 6 month closure.

DrazPhlaz

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May 24, 2020, 9:48:53 PM5/24/20
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Hopefully they make the bridge 4 lanes, we’d be one step closer to a fully 4 lane A6 (and proper Wollongong - Newcastle bypass)
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Aevion

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May 25, 2020, 11:00:14 PM5/25/20
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Would this require the full replacement of the structure? Or could they simply widen this one and build a new one alongside it? Was also curious if this bridge has been previously widened as well, given the rails appear to be of a later design.

Seems strange the Sutherland - Menai route is still unnumbered.

Sam Laybutt

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May 25, 2020, 11:44:25 PM5/25/20
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I seem to have a vague recollection of a truck crash on the bridge in the 1980s which resulted in the upgraded barriers and the warning signage on the approach? 

Current deck width is approx 6.3m which suggests only minor widening as the 1941 structure would be about that wide. 

From: aussie-...@googlegroups.com <aussie-...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Aevion <vortec-...@live.com.au>
Sent: Tuesday, 26 May 2020 11:00 AM
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Subject: [Aussie Highways] Re: Heathcote Road - six month closure for bridge upgrade
 

DrazPhlaz

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May 26, 2020, 12:50:05 AM5/26/20
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A bridge takes a good year or more to build especially one like this, so only closing for 6 months might be to make adjustments to safety widening the existing one so they can get started on a new parallel one.

Sutherland to Menai is pretty short for a route number, though if that number continued along Heathcote Road (with a A6 duplex along NIR) it could be a good Liverpool - Sutherland route

Aevion

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May 26, 2020, 1:22:34 AM5/26/20
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That would be a great arrangement, but I wonder with the F6 extension now going ahead what importance the A6 corridor and Heathcote Road will have, let alone the Sutherland - Menai route.

li...@paulrands.com

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Jun 22, 2020, 2:28:20 AM6/22/20
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Long overdue 

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Nihat

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Oct 9, 2020, 3:56:07 AM10/9/20
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They have updated the website, the new bridge is less than 3m wider. The local member (from the govt side) is insisting on a 4 lane bridge or 2 bridges with 2 lanes each way. 

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ed24f1

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Oct 9, 2020, 5:41:26 AM10/9/20
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Agreed - I reckon you could get away with the current width if it was one way with a duplicated bridge. The 2nd bridge will be required in a few years anyway so best to do it now.

Brendan Terrett

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Oct 9, 2020, 9:34:47 AM10/9/20
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It would be MADNESS to close the bridge for six months for almost no improvement. They should build an extra bridge span so motorists don’t need to suffer such a large disruption on such a critical route. Then they’d have the ability to widen the existing bridge without disruption, and it would futureproof the corridor in case it’s decided to make Heathcote Road three or four lanes later on.

DrazPhlaz

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Oct 9, 2020, 7:57:37 PM10/9/20
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If they’re really gonna replace the bridge entirely, why not make it four lanes? They turned alfords point road bridge from 3 to 6 lanes

Heathcote road’s traffic is horrible in summer, you’ve got all the Bankstown and western suburbs holidaymakers driving down to Wollongong and the south coast, and one lane won’t cut it

Paul Rands

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Oct 11, 2020, 11:24:51 AM10/11/20
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I agree with the local member and with the idea of building a new bridge beside the existing one, then rebuilding the original bridge. Such a poorly thought out exercise in its current form.

Paul Rands
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> On 10 Oct 2020, at 10:57, DrazPhlaz <harrison...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> If they’re really gonna replace the bridge entirely, why not make it four lanes? They turned alfords point road bridge from 3 to 6 lanes
>
> Heathcote road’s traffic is horrible in summer, you’ve got all the Bankstown and western suburbs holidaymakers driving down to Wollongong and the south coast, and one lane won’t cut it
>
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Sam Laybutt

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Oct 11, 2020, 8:32:42 PM10/11/20
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Looks like a new deck on the existing piers to me, not a new bridge.

From: aussie-...@googlegroups.com <aussie-...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of DrazPhlaz <harrison...@gmail.com>
Sent: Saturday, 10 October 2020 7:57 AM
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Subject: Re: [Aussie Highways] Heathcote Road - six month closure for bridge upgrade
 
If they’re really gonna replace the bridge entirely, why not make it four lanes? They turned alfords point road bridge from 3 to 6 lanes

Heathcote road’s traffic is horrible in summer, you’ve got all the Bankstown and western suburbs holidaymakers driving down to Wollongong and the south coast, and one lane won’t cut it

-

Sam Laybutt

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Oct 11, 2020, 8:36:39 PM10/11/20
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I'm not even sure it's technically possible to build a new bridge adjacent to the existing bridge without long road closures. There's no room to work with and rather large sandstone cliffs to blast out of the way. 

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Subject: Re: [Aussie Highways] Heathcote Road - six month closure for bridge upgrade

kakaduhwyA21 (formerly stuarthwy87)

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Oct 12, 2020, 2:00:37 AM10/12/20
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well, looks like M6 will have to be rerouted onto Bangor Bypass.

Musa Hodzic

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Oct 15, 2020, 8:41:50 AM10/15/20
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No foresight whatsoever!

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Nihat

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Feb 17, 2021, 9:23:14 PM2/17/21
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REF for the project is open, not sure when submissions close.

People in the area may be sceptical about this being completed asap and TFNSW getting this right, a nearby project of widening Princes Highway at Kirrawee has stalled and the contract was torn up. This is where all the traffic will be heading during the 6 month closure.
  

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Nihat

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Jun 9, 2022, 10:27:09 PM6/9/22
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Design has been updated so a new bridge is being built alongside it, construction is now underway.

Aevion

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Jun 10, 2022, 1:30:06 AM6/10/22
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Interesting. Looks similar to what they did on the New England Highway at Blandford and Aberdeen, only on a larger scale.

Wonder what this would mean for any potential duplication of Heathcote Road? I guess it could work but it'd be a bit of a squeeze. Shame they couldn't at least make the new one wider.

Paul R

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Jun 10, 2022, 9:33:07 AM6/10/22
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Well that's a bit underdone. Especially given the current traffic flows, and in an area that is growing.

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AlienChex

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Jun 11, 2022, 10:14:35 PM6/11/22
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Why not just build a second bridge with two lanes and have 2x2 to allow for future widening of the entire road?

It will only see more traffic as it is the main road from wollongong to Liverpool, Bankstown and Newcastle 

Paul R

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Jun 13, 2022, 8:55:44 AM6/13/22
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Agreed

Luke W

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Jun 26, 2022, 8:19:52 AM6/26/22
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> It will only see more traffic as it is the main road from wollongong to Liverpool, Bankstown and Newcastle 

I'd almost contend in the Woronora section's current state that it probably *shouldn't* be, though - just a shame the Bangor Bypass section is usually packed as it is because it seems the much more suitable route to take the A6 now. Although a second bridge will give more room for wide loads than the original design, still being six metres wide each way leaves too little room for turning it into two lanes, plus there isn't exactly room to make the immediate section up the hill four lanes anyway, or two plus a climbing lane at the very least.
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