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Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) has released a refined design for the Rankin Park to Jesmond section of the Newcastle Inner City Bypass, but it does not include the entry and exit ramps at McCaffrey Drive sought by residents.
The new plans for the $280 million fifth stage of the bypass were posted on the RMS website on Wednesday afternoon. Public comment is invited until June 9 and a number of public information sessions will be held at Stockland Jesmond during May.
Rob Brook, a solicitor working with residents who have campaigned for on/off ramps to be provided at McCaffrey Road, said his initial assessment of the new plan was that is was worse than the original.
“They are saying that, based on their modelling, only 80 to 90 vehicles a day would use an on/off ramp at McCaffrey Drive, but their own figures show that 19,000 vehicles a day use that street, so I would really want to see a copy of the raw data and assumptions that led to that statistic,” Mr Brook said.
“We don’t want to see another Tourle Street bridge situation where they realise a few years after they’ve built it that the traffic data used was incorrect and they then have to go back and rectify it at phenomenal expense.”
The Refined Strategic Design Report said a detailed review was carried out to investigate the need to provide a northbound on-ramp and/or southbound off-ramp to McCaffrey Drive.
“The investigations found that while design and construction of the ramps is technically possible, the low forecast usage of the ramps and the high cost to build makes the ramps not economically viable,” the report said.
“As a result, the addition of McCaffrey Drive ramps have not been included in the refined strategic design.”
Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter Scot MacDonald said the project included major improvements to traffic flow at the interchanges and minimised potential environmental and community impacts.
“Key project improvements include moving the bypass to minimise impacts on the environment and nearby residential areas, replacing the roundabout on Newcastle Road at Jesmond with traffic lights and increasing the traffic capacity at the northern and southern interchanges for improved traffic flow.
“A half interchange would provide access to and from the north to the western side of the John Hunter Hospital. A bridge across the bypass would separate traffic accessing the hospital and also provide pedestrian access across the bypass to the hospital.”
He said improvements had also been made to the design at the southern interchange, which now includes a bridge to carry northbound traffic on Lookout Road over the bypass and new traffic lights to connect bypass traffic with Lookout Road.
“A second right turn lane out of McCaffrey Drive and lengthening the left turn lane out of McCaffrey Drive are also proposed improvements in the refined strategic design.”
The community will be able to view the proposed design at information sessions at Stockland Jesmond on Thursday, May 19 and 26, between 4pm and 8.30pm and Saturday, May 21 and 28, between 9am and 12.30pm.
The plans can be viewed at: rms.nsw.gov.au/rp2j