South Road T2D. We continue to know what we don’t know.

The Department of Infrastructure & Transport (DIT) has provided the public some insight into the T2D. They have raised, however, more questions than providing answers to those we already have. This means we continue to know what we don’t know.

 

Last Saturday, I attended one of the four public briefings conducted by the DIT. These sessions were rescheduled after the recent Covid-19 lockdown disturbed all activity in South Australia.

What I learned is there is much work to be done by DIT before they can provide answers to the many questions we all have. I too have many questions. The best advice I can give anyone, including myself, is to have some patience. Give them (DIT) a chance to do the detailed investigations they need to do, to have the level of detail necessary to provide the answers.

This may take them until the end of 2021.

Until they conduct survey work, and geological soil testing, etc. Until they understand our concerns they can’t provide the “final” package. Part of the exercise of conducting the recent forums is to get a better picture of what our concerns are. Our fears.

Please be patient.

I learned also on Saturday, amongst other things, is they are very unsure themselves. Unsure as to what may be possible. Unsure too as to whether they can avoid certain works they would prefer not to do.

 

Work like moving the Telephone Exchange in Glandore. Whether they can avoid demolishing the Emerson overpass. Whether they can retain the Gallipoli underpass as it is, or not. Likewise whether the recently constructed, and more recently repaired, tram overpass can be retained.

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They cannot pinpoint where the tunnel will start and finish. They can approximate that it will start somewhere between the Gallipoli underpass and the Emerson overpass. It is likely to be around the tram overpass but there are many engineering issues to address before that becomes a reality.

This means we must wait to gain any knowledge as to what, if any, compulsory property acquisitions may be required in Black Forest or Everard Park. It means we cannot know what access/egress issues may occur with us being able to access our homes from South Road.

We can be reasonably assured, that said, that our section of South Road will be a transitional area from grade (or at least the reduced level of Gallipoli) to the tunnel.

We know they plan for the tunnel to be some 20m under grade. The gradient needs to cater for heavy trucks to move freely enough not to disturb the progress of cars.

We don’t know if the tunnel will be under South Road or adjacent. From an engineering perspective, they would prefer it to be directly under South Road. We don’t know (they don’t know) where we will be able to access the tunnel. Where the in ramps and out ramps will be.

Something else I can confirm is that the tunneling excavation will occur at the southern end, at Darlington. All of it. The full length of it. There will be no excavating for the tunnel adjacent to Black Forest of Everard Park. Disruption will still occur here however in respect of creating access/egress from the tunnel to gain access to Anzac Highway. Anzac Highway, of course, is a key road for access to the CBD.

So, as I said in my last T2D post and we continue to know what we don’t know, watch this space. We are all on a journey here. You and me both. And trust this, we are contributing to the final design.