A key road upgrade in East Perth is finally complete after four years of construction, with the Tonkin Gap project now set to benefit thousands of truck drivers and other road users.
Key to the project was the removal of a notorious bottleneck where three lanes merged into two, along with the removal and replacement of the Broun Avenue Bridge and duplication of the Redcliffe Bridge, which is now known as Moree-Beeloo Bridge.
The now alleviated bottleneck section of the Tonkin Highway was reopened last December with speed limits of 100 km/h, with the completion of further rail-enabling works now reinstating the speed limit in both directions between Reid Highway and Collier Road.
The final section of the Tonkin Highway, between Hepburn Avenue and Reid Highway, is set to reach completion next month.
Other improvements to the highway and surrounding roads included in the project are new interchanges at Great Eastern Highway and Guildford Road, and new brudges over the Swan River, Dunstone Road, Railway Parade and Guildford Road.
The Tonkin Gap Alliance, comprised of BMD, Georgiou Group, WA Limestone, BG&E and GHD worked with Main Roads and Public Transport Authority to deliver the project, creating over 3000 jobs and employing over 250 subcontractors.
Western Australia Transport Minister Rita Saffioti says the on-time delivery of the project is a credit to all involved.
“Tonkin Gap is one of the most important road infrastructure projects being undertaken in the Perth metropolitan area and to see it delivering benefits to the community is fantastic,” Saffioti says.
“Completing this project highlights our commitment to supporting more efficient transport solutions for people travelling through Perth.
“This has been a challenging program to deliver, so I’m really pleased that it’s been completed on-time and is able to improve travel times for commuters and better connect cyclists and pedestrians across the city.”
Federal Member for Perth Patrick Gorman says the upgrades will shave six minutes off commute times during morning peak, and 11 minutes in afternoon peak.
The project was initially allocated $1.2 billion in the 2019-20 WA budget, with an additional $61 million allocated to the project in 2023-24.
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