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Works start on final section of WA’s $175M Albany Ring Road

Works underway on final section of WA’s $175M Albany Ring Road
Works underway on final section of WA’s $175M Albany Ring Road
The project will establish free-flowing connection between Albany Highway and Princess Royal Drive. Image courtesy of the Western Australian Government.

Work on the final six-kilometre section of the Albany Ring Road project, between South Coast Highway and Princess Royal Drive in Western Australia, is officially underway.

When complete, the project will establish an 11-kilometre, free-flowing connection between Albany Highway and Princess Royal Drive, improving freight efficiency and reducing congestion on existing routes.

Planning for Albany Ring Road began in 1997 which included the construction of Menang Drive and Albany Highway interchange, completed in 2007.

Phase one of the project includes the construction of a new interchange at Albany Highway and Menang Drive. Phase two will extend the Albany Ring Road from Lancaster Road to Princess Royal Drive.

Over the past month, pre-construction activity has taken place to prepare the site for the upcoming earthworks and bridge works. Activity has included installation of new fencing, seed collection, topsoil removal, utilities relocations and services protection works.

The final section of the Ring Road was subject to significant design changes last year, to improve local connectivity and reduce the overall footprint, with the overall vegetation clearing requirement lowered by almost 50 per cent.

A two-stage program of construction is required to deliver the new interchange, with the first stage focusing on the Link Road connection ramps, before attention turns to the main bridge structure.

Construction of the first grade-separated interchange in the Great Southern Region – at Menang Drive and Albany Highway – is on track, with the bridge and road ramps set to open in April.

Western Australian Transport Minister Rita Saffioti said this was the biggest infrastructure project ever undertaken in the Great Southern region.

“When complete, the Albany Ring Road will take heavy vehicles away from the town centre, better support local businesses and improve commute times through the city,” she said.

“It will provide certainty for Albany Port users and open up new economic opportunities to the north and west of the city, while also taking heavy vehicles out of residential areas and away from the centre of town.”

The Australian Government has committed $140 million toward the $175 million Albany Ring Road upgrade, with the Western Australian Government providing $35 million.

For more information on the project, click here.

 


 

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