Planning progress for John Renshaw Drive in NSW

The Australian and New South Wales governments are investing $15 million to progress planning work that will help cut congestion, reduce travel times and improve road safety along John Renshaw Drive in New South Wales.

Currently, motorists face major travel time delays when navigating the junction of the M1 Pacific Motorway, John Renshaw Drive, Weakleys Drive and New England Highway at Beresfield. These delays are driven by high traffic volumes, multiple traffic signals and a lack of road capacity.

The New South Wales Government will investigate upgrades to John Renshaw Drive including improvement options for the intersection of the M1 Motorway and Weakleys Drive; lane duplication of Weakleys Drive between Enterprise Drive and Canavan Drive; and access from Weakleys Drive to the New England Highway.

The upgrade will help meet the current and future traffic demands at the junction, support development of the proposed industrial areas and support broader regional economy by providing more efficient network access connections.

It will also contribute freight capacity, efficiency and productivity for New South Wales by reducing overall transport time and cost for heavy vehicles along the National Land Transport Network and state road network in the Beresfield area.

Related stories:

• Contract awarded to upgrade M1 Pacific Motorway at Weakleys Drive
• Tenders called for M1 Pacific Motorway project
• Design contract awarded for Beresfield intersection upgrade

Further traffic and economic modelling is being conducted to confirm what the proposed upgrades will include and the final design.

Timelines for construction will be dependent on further funding and planning approvals.

The project is jointly funded by the Australian and NSW Governments, with the Federal Government providing $12 million and the New South Wales Government providing $3 million.

Jenny Aitchison, New South Wales, Regional Transport and Roads Minister said upgrades to John Renshaw Drive will support the development of proposed industrial areas.

“As well as the broader regional economy by providing more efficient access for commuters and heavy freight between the Lower and Upper Hunter and to key regional employment areas such as the Port of Newcastle and Newcastle Airport,” said Aitchison.

“This incredibly important planning is one of several projects, including M1 to Raymond Terrace and Hexham Straight Widening, we are undertaking to address current and predicted traffic growth at the critical strategic junction of the M1 Motorway, Pacific and New England highways.”

For more information, https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/