Member for Hawkesbury Dominic Perrottet today announced the new Windsor Bridge would operate with three traffic lanes when it opens in 2019 to reduce congestion for Hawkesbury drivers.
The lane configuration for the bridge has been changed from one lane in each direction to two lanes southbound and one lane northbound to realise greater traffic improvements from the new bridge as soon as it opens.
The additional lane is part of the NSW Government’s plan to replace the existing Windsor Bridge with a new structure about 35 metres downstream and upgrade the approach roads and intersections to improve traffic flow through the area.
Mr Perrottet said the additional lane showed the NSW Government is serious about planning for Hawkesbury’s future, improving safety and tackling congestion local roads.
“We are getting on with the job of delivering the infrastructure and services the Hawkesbury desperately needs,” Mr Perrottet said.
“This extra lane will save time on the road, especially in peak hour, and that means less time in traffic, and more time doing the things you want to do, like getting home to your family after work.”
“We are building a better bridge than first planned as we are committed to delivering the infrastructure of the 21st century and to keep Hawkesbury moving.”
More than 19,000 vehicles now use the river crossing every day and traffic modelling has shown this will increase to 26,000 by 2026.
The additional third lane is expected to improve the speed of traffic flowing across the bridge in the morning peak from roughly 38km/h to 50km/h, and from 6km/h to 42km/h in the evening peak, for 2026 traffic flows.
The third lane would also reduce queue lengths on Bridge Street by up to 320 metres in the evening peak and 730 metres in the morning peak.
Mr Perrottet said the third traffic lane will not affect the improvements to safety and access for pedestrians and cyclists.
“The bridge deck width remains unchanged and the bridge will still include a three metre shared path to provide a safe connection for pedestrians and cyclists to Thompson Square and surrounding locations such as Macquarie Park and Windsor Beach,” Mr Perrottet said.
The third lane will complement other measures to improve traffic flow including installing traffic lights at the intersection of Bridge and George Streets and synchronising them with the existing lights at nearby Macquarie Street and a new dual lane roundabout at Freemans Reach Road and Wilberforce Road.
It is expected major work on the new bridge will start in late 2017 and take around two years to complete.
For more information or to view an animation of the revised bridge lane configuration and the benefits for all road users visit www.rms.nsw.gov.au.