❓ Mr. Hatton asks why Mitchell Freeway was closed for the Reid Highway project. The Minister explains it was for bridge beam installation, coordinated with rail maintenance to minimise disruption, and highlights the project's benefits and cost.
AnsweredQoN 928Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
MITCHELL FREEWAY–REID HIGHWAY INTERSECTION —
UPGRADE
928. Mr C.D. HATTON to the Minister for
Transport:
I refer to the Reid Highway road
project in Balcatta, which is going on just fine, but on the weekend Mitchell Freeway
was closed. Can the minister please advise why the freeway was closed for that
project?
UPGRADE
928. Mr C.D. HATTON to the Minister for
Transport:
I refer to the Reid Highway road
project in Balcatta, which is going on just fine, but on the weekend Mitchell Freeway
was closed. Can the minister please advise why the freeway was closed for that
project?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for the question.
The road closures related to the
duplication of Reid Highway from Erindale Road to Marmion Avenue. The closures
were in place on both Friday and Saturday night to enable the lifting and
positioning of bridge beams for the new bridge that will carry Reid Highway
traffic over Mitchell Freeway. In fact, a third night was actually programmed
on Sunday night but not needed because the work crews worked efficiently and
effectively and finished ahead of schedule on Saturday night. I therefore
congratulate both Main Roads Western Australia and its lead contractor on this
project, Georgiou Group, for a well-run weekend operation in which eight
fabricated steel and concrete bridge beams were raised into position over
Mitchell Freeway using a 600-tonne Superlift crane. This was a major logistical
task, with each beam measuring up to 44.5 metres long and weighing up to 162 tonnes.
Main Roads scheduled the bridge works to coincide with the Public Transport
Authority–Joondalup railway maintenance shutdown. Although I
acknowledge that it was disruptive to travellers, the synchronisation of both
the rail and the bridge works was designed to minimise the impact. When
completed, the new traffic bridge will provide two lanes in each direction
between Erindale and Duffy Roads, delivering immediate safety and efficiency
gains along with greater vehicle capacity in the future. This section of the
highway currently carries 30 000 vehicles a day, but by 2031 it is anticipated
it will almost double to 59 000 vehicles a day.
This project, combined with the Reid
Highway–Malaga Drive interchange currently under construction is
costing $108 million and both are jointly funded by the state and federal
governments. These projects will improve another two major bottlenecks in Perth
and they reinforce our commitment to tackling congestion right across the Perth
metropolitan area.
The road closures related to the
duplication of Reid Highway from Erindale Road to Marmion Avenue. The closures
were in place on both Friday and Saturday night to enable the lifting and
positioning of bridge beams for the new bridge that will carry Reid Highway
traffic over Mitchell Freeway. In fact, a third night was actually programmed
on Sunday night but not needed because the work crews worked efficiently and
effectively and finished ahead of schedule on Saturday night. I therefore
congratulate both Main Roads Western Australia and its lead contractor on this
project, Georgiou Group, for a well-run weekend operation in which eight
fabricated steel and concrete bridge beams were raised into position over
Mitchell Freeway using a 600-tonne Superlift crane. This was a major logistical
task, with each beam measuring up to 44.5 metres long and weighing up to 162 tonnes.
Main Roads scheduled the bridge works to coincide with the Public Transport
Authority–Joondalup railway maintenance shutdown. Although I
acknowledge that it was disruptive to travellers, the synchronisation of both
the rail and the bridge works was designed to minimise the impact. When
completed, the new traffic bridge will provide two lanes in each direction
between Erindale and Duffy Roads, delivering immediate safety and efficiency
gains along with greater vehicle capacity in the future. This section of the
highway currently carries 30 000 vehicles a day, but by 2031 it is anticipated
it will almost double to 59 000 vehicles a day.
This project, combined with the Reid
Highway–Malaga Drive interchange currently under construction is
costing $108 million and both are jointly funded by the state and federal
governments. These projects will improve another two major bottlenecks in Perth
and they reinforce our commitment to tackling congestion right across the Perth
metropolitan area.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.