The New South Wales roads minister admits Sydney motorists have been left frustrated by peak-hour delays caused by Australia's most complicated underground interchange.
Key points:
- The Rozelle Interchange has faced a string of hiccups since opening on Sunday
- Rebel Wilson was among the unhappy drivers who said their trip was now longer
- Construction trucks will be diverted from Thursday to ease peak hour congestion
The Rozelle Interchange in Sydney's inner west was opened on Sunday, aiming to cut travel times from Parramatta to CBD by up to 20 minutes and take about 45,000 cars off Parramatta Road each day.
Despite improvements to signage earlier this week, commuters have experienced their third straight day of lengthy delays, with some reporting wait times exceeding an hour.
A car crash and an oil spill exacerbated the traffic chaos on Wednesday, and actor Rebel Wilson was among those who took to social media to vent their frustration.
"Thanks Rozelle Interchange for now making a 15 minute trip into the city 90 minutes via Victoria Road – WTF," she posted on her Instagram account.
Another commuter, Neville, told ABC Radio Sydney it had taken him 40 minutes to get from Balmain to the Anzac Bridge.
"It's a disaster out there, we have become prisoners of our suburb," he said.
NSW Roads Minister John Graham said while the new underground motorway maze was an "important" change to the city's traffic network, he understood not everyone was having a positive experience.
"I want to express some real sympathy with the frustrations that motorists have felt. I know drivers have been frustrated and the government's very sympathetic to that and I am personally," he said.
Construction trucks to be diverted
Extra changes will take effect tomorrow in order to ease congestion, with large trucks from nearby tunnelling projects being prohibited from travelling through the area during the morning peak.
The trucks will diverted from the area between 7-9:30 am from tomorrow, in what Mr Graham said was a "common-sense intervention".
"They've been mixing it with commuter traffic in the peak hour and that's one of the things that has made it worse," he said.
The trucks are being used to carry spoil from the nearby Western Harbour Tunnel and Sydney Metro dig site, and have been instructed to change their operating hours only in the morning period.
While Mr Graham said the government remained open to all solutions, he has again ruled out offering a toll-free period while commuters become familiar with the tunnel network.
"I would have liked to see a toll free period here but I've been given strong advice from Transport for NSW and Transurban and WestConnex about the difficulties of doing that," he said.
"This really in some ways the front door to the wider WestConnex network and that's one of the reasons it's difficult to introduce a toll free period here."
Transport for NSW secretary Josh Murray said while he accepted some people were having a "horror run" along the City West Link, people needed to be patient.
"We understand that many people are having a sub-optimal experience and are being held up in huge delays, but the stats show us there is some improvement day by day," he said.
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiXGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmFiYy5uZXQuYXUvbmV3cy8yMDIzLTExLTI5L25zdy1yb3plbGxlLWludGVyY2hhbmdlLXJlYmVsLXdpbHNvbi10cnVja3MvMTAzMTY3NTEw0gEoaHR0cHM6Ly9hbXAuYWJjLm5ldC5hdS9hcnRpY2xlLzEwMzE2NzUxMA?oc=5
2023-11-29 05:46:25Z
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