News archive - Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link

The Beaches Link and Gore Hill Freeway Connection EIS is now on public exhibition until midnight Monday 1 March 2021. Read the EIS, find out more or ask our team a question on our interactive portal.

Over the next two months, we will be carrying out investigation work in the Waverton, Berrys Bay, Yurulbin Park and Birchgrove areas. Our work involves using electronic equipment to identify underground services and then taking soil and water samples from the ground using a drill mounted on a truck.

Installation of data loggers and removal of materials on sites in the following areas, Waverton, Berrys Bay, Yurulbin Park and Birchgrove Oval. Our work hours are from 7:00am to 6:00pm Monday to Friday and from 8:00am to 1:00pm on Saturdays weather permitting.

Our work hours are from 7:00am to 6:00pm Monday to Friday and from 8:00am to 1:00pm on Saturdays.
For more information, including how the work may affect you please see our October 2020 notification (PDF, 3.37Mb). If you have any questions about the project or would like to speak to a member of the project team, please don't hesitate to contact us on 1800 931 189 or whtbl@transport.nsw.gov.au.

The submissions report for Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade is now available.

We appreciate and thank all stakeholders and community members who provided a submission on the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). We would also like to thank those of you who visited our interactive portal, called, emailed and attended our information sessions in Cammeray, North Sydney and Balmain.

We received 1459 submissions. Of these submissions 18 were from NSW Government agencies and local councils, and 1441 from other organisations and members of the public.

We have prepared a submissions report to respond to your concerns. For more information please read our September 2020 Community Update (PDF, 5.20Mb). The submissions report is available on the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment's website and our interactive portal.

Over the next two months, we will be carrying out investigation work around the North Sydney, Cammeray and Naremburn areas. Surveying will involve measurement and mapping of the land. This information will be used to help inform the ongoing planning for the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade Project.

This work will start in early September 2020 and take about two months to complete, weather permitting. Most of our work will take place during the day from 7.00am to 6.00pm Monday to Friday and from 8.00am to 1.00pm on Saturdays.

For more information, including how the work may affect you, changes to traffic, and a map of the planned work locations, please see our more detailed September 2020 notification (PDF, 946Kb). If you have any questions about the project or would like to speak to a member of the project team, please don’t hesitate to contact us on 1800 931 189 or whtbl@transport.nsw.gov.au.

As part of the Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link Program, Transport for NSW has committed to creating new public spaces. This includes returning almost 90 per cent of open space we use during construction as a new sporting and recreational precinct for Balgowlah. This will be done in collaboration with the Northern Beaches Council and you, the community.

We will have a dedicated consultation period to give you an opportunity to have your say on the final layout of the sporting and recreational facilities. This process will begin after the Beaches Link Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) public exhibition period later this year.

For more information, please see our August 2020 Community Update (PDF, 1.34Kb). Alternatively, to speak to a team member, call us on 1800 931 189 or email whtbl@transport.nsw.gov.au.

Over the next two months, we will be carrying out investigation work around the Warringah Freeway to collect more information about underground services. This information will be used to help inform the ongoing planning for the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade Project.

This work will start in mid-August and take about two months to complete, weather permitting. Most of our work will take place during the day from 7.00am to 6.00pm Monday to Friday and from 8.00am to 1.00pm on Saturdays.

For more information, including how the work may affect you, changes to traffic and a map of the planned work locations, please see our more detailed August notification (PDF, 711Kb). Ongoing updates will also be posted on this page as the work progresses.

If you have any questions about the project or would like to speak to a member of the project team, please don’t hesitate to contact us on 1800 931 189 or whtbl@transport.nsw.gov.au.

These reports present factual results of the contamination assessment of seabed sediments along the proposed alignment of the Immersed Tube Tunnel options and at proposed construction sites.

View or download the Contamination Factual Report – Marine Investigation: Revision B, December 2017 (PDF, 55.4Mb)

View or download the Contamination Factual Report – Marine Investigation: Revision C, August 2018 (PDF 30Mb)

If you have any questions about the project or would like to speak to a member of the project team, please don't hesitate to contact us on 1800 931 189 or whtbl@transport.nsw.gov.au.

We are carrying out marine monitoring in Middle Harbour to provide important information to help our ongoing planning for the Beaches Link project. There will be some navigation restrictions to allow the monitoring to take place safely.

The safety and wellbeing of our workforce and the wider community is our highest priority. Our people are following hygiene and appropriate social distancing measures and will continue to do so.

Vessel operators are advised we deployed two marine monitoring buoys in Middle Harbour on Tuesday 28 April 2020 and these will remain in place until Sunday 31 May 2020.

The location of the sites were selected to avoid permanent moorings and high traffic areas. The locations are expected to have limited impact on marine traffic and to be clearly visible at all times. Our work will mean there will be some impacts on navigation in Middle Harbour.

All vessel operators and persons in the vicinity must keep a proper lookout, keep clear of the buoys, pay particular attention to construction work vessels and any advisory signage and exercise extreme caution when navigating in the area. This navigation restriction and warning remains in place for the duration of the works.

For more information, please see our more detailed notification* (PDF, 231Kb) or contact us via 1800 931 189 or whtbl@transport.nsw.gov.au.

*Notification was updated 4 May 2020 due to a change in locations of the marine monitoring buoys and new work dates.

The Environmental Impact Statement for the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade was on exhibition between 29 January and 30 March 2020.

We thank you for your submissions on the project. We will now prepare a submissions report to respond to the issues/concerns raised.

The report will be submitted to Department of Planning, Industry and Environment and will be available on their website in the coming months. This report and the EIS help inform the Minster for Planning and Public Spaces’ decision on the project.

If the project is approved it will be built and operated in accordance with the plans described in the EIS and the Minster for Planning and Public Spaces’ Conditions of Approval.

If you have any questions about the project or would like to speak to a member of the project team, please don’t hesitate to contact us on 1800 931 189 or whtbl@transport.nsw.gov.au.

We have now updated the Proposed Reference Design for Beaches Link. This includes a number of key construction sites and design features of the project, including:

• Flat Rock Drive temporary tunnelling site
• Wakehurst Parkway temporary tunnelling site
• A refined construction site layout and access road alignment at Balgowlah.

Because of these changes, it will take us more time to finalise the EIS for public exhibition. We expect to have the Beaches Link EIS available for public exhibition later in 2020. For more information please see our community update (PDF, 3.54Mb) or contact the team.

You can learn more about the project in your local area by viewing our latest factsheets.

• Cammeray (PDF, 703Kb)
• Naremburn and Willoughby (PDF, 987Kb)
• Seaforth and Frenchs Forest (PDF, 571Kb)
• Balgowlah (PDF, 451Kb)

Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Environmental Impact Statement exhibition period extended.

Thank you to everyone who has made a submission so far on the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

Following requests from local community members, the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) has extended the exhibition end date of the Western Harbour Tunnel & Warringah Freeway Upgrade EIS from the 12 March to 30 March 2020.

This will provide you with an extra 18 days to write your submissions and provide them to DPIE for consideration. You can make your submission on the Project, by visiting the DPIE portal.

The exhibition period is now a total of 61 days which is similar to the EIS display period for the WestConnex M4-M5 Link project.

We are holding additional information sessions to support the extension of the exhibition period. Our new sessions are:

• Thursday 5 March 2020, Norths 12 Abbott Street, Cammeray, 4pm – 7pm
• Thursday 12 March 2020, Balmain Town Hall, 370 Darling Street, Balmain, 4pm - 7pm
• Thursday 26 March 2020, Fred Hutley Hall, 200 Miller Street, North Sydney, 4pm - 7pm

Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade Environmental Impact Statement now on display.

The Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade is an important part of our vision to create an integrated road and public transport network, balancing the needs of motorists and local communities.

We thank you for the feedback you have provided so far, which has helped us make a number of positive improvements to the project. We welcome your submission on the EIS. Submissions must be made directly to the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) by 30 March 2020. We encourage you to make your submission using the online form on the DPIE website.

Find out more

Visit our interactive web portal to read the EIS, find out more or ask our team a question.

Meet and talk with our team

Thank you to the over 900 people who have already visited our six community information sessions across Balmain, Cammeray and North Sydney.

We are holding an additional three information sessions to support the extension of the EIS exhibition period.

We will also be attending a number of local community markets, so please look out for us.

Following consideration of your feedback, we have prepared a detailed Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). We expect the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) to place the EIS on public exhibition for your important feedback in early 2020.

Our commitment is for the public exhibition period to be at least six weeks to allow more time for you to review the information, ask questions of our project team and make a submission to DPIE. For more information please see our community update (PDF, 3.27Mb) or contact the team.

You can learn more about the project in your local area by viewing our latest factsheets.

• Berrys Bay (PDF, 311Kb)
• Cammeray (PDF, 703Kb)

Thank you to everyone who provided feedback on the proposed reference design for Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link.

The proposed reference design was on exhibition last year between July and December. During this time we received over 7000 pieces of feedback. We are currently reviewing all the feedback to see where we can incorporate some of the suggestions from the community and refine the design.

The next steps from here are to prepare the Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) and place them on exhibition where the community will again be given the opportunity to provide feedback.

If you would like to be kept up to date with the latest information about the project, including when the EIS is on public exhibition, please email us at whtbl@rms.nsw.gov.au and ask to be added to our database.

Community engagement on the proposed reference design for the Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link continues until Saturday 1 December 2018.

More than 2,600 people attended 20 community information sessions held since the proposed reference design was announced in July 2018.

Your feedback is important to us and it’s not too late to have your say. Make a comment on one of the interactive maps on this webpage or email the Project Team, whtbl@rms.nsw.gov.au.

All feedback received on or before Saturday 1 December 2018 will be recorded on the project database for consideration as the reference design is finalised.

A series of pop-up information sessions have been announced as community engagement continues on the proposed reference design for the Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link.

Come talk to a member of the project team or leave your feedback at one of the following pop-ups:

Stockland Balgowlah

• Thursday 1 November, 10am – 3pm
• Friday 2 November, 10am – 3pm

Birkenhead Point Outlet Centre

• Wednesday 7 November, 10am – 5:30pm
• Thursday 8 November, 10am – 5:30pm
• Friday 9 November, 10am – 5:30pm

More detailed information is available at the following community information sessions:

Northbridge Golf Club
Sailors Bay Rd, Northbridge

• Thursday 1 November, 2pm – 6pm
• Saturday 3 November, 10am – 2pm

Cammeray Golf Club
Park Ave, Cremorne

• Saturday 10 November, 12pm – 4pm

To accommodate our final session on Saturday 10 November, community engagement has been extended until Saturday 1 December. Feedback on the proposed reference design will continue to be accepted until this date.

Community engagement is well underway for the proposed Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link reference design.

Learn more about the project and have your say at any of the following feedback sessions:

Balgowlah RSL, 30/38 Ethel St, Seaforth

• Thursday 25 October 3pm – 7pm

Northbridge Golf Club, Sailors Bay Rd, Northbridge

• Thursday 1 November, 2pm – 6pm
• Saturday 3 November, 10am – 2pm

Cammeray Golf Club, Park Ave, Cremorne

• Saturday 10 November, 12pm – 4pm

To accommodate our final session on Saturday 10 November, community engagement has been extended until Saturday 1 December. Feedback on the proposed reference design will continue to be accepted until this date.

Community engagement on the proposed reference design for the Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link continues with details released for upcoming feedback sessions to be held on the Northern Beaches and Balmain.

Manly Warringah Leagues Club, 563 Pittwater Rd, Brookvale

• Thursday 11 October, 2pm – 6pm
• Saturday 13 October, 10am – 2pm

Balmain Town Hall (Meeting Room), 370 Darling St, Balmain

• Thursday 18 October, 1pm – 5pm
• Saturday 20 October, 10am – 2pm

Balgowlah RSL, 30-38 Ethel St, Seaforth

• Thursday 25 October, 3pm – 7pm

Details about upcoming sessions at Northbridge and Cammeray will be posted shortly.

Feedback on the proposed reference design will be received until the current round of community engagement ends on Friday 9 November 2018.

Details for five upcoming community information sessions on the proposed reference design for the Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link have been released.

You are welcome to drop in to any of the following sessions to learn more about the project and have your say:

Balgowlah RSL

• Thursday 4 October, 2pm – 6pm
• Saturday 6 October, 10am – 2pm
• Thursday 25 October, 3pm – 7pm

Manly Warringah Leagues Club

• Thursday 11 October, 2pm – 6pm
• Saturday 13 October, 10am – 2pm

The session organised for Thursday 25 October at Balgowlah RSL is an extra session scheduled for those who cannot attend during the school holidays.

Details about upcoming sessions at Balmain and Northbridge will be posted here shortly.

You can learn more and have your say on the proposed reference design for the Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link.

Don’t forget to attend our next community feedback sessions in North Sydney:

• • Fred Hutley Hall (North Sydney Council Chambers)
    200 Miller St, North Sydney
    • Thursday 13th September, 2pm – 6pm
    • Saturday 15th September, 10am – 2pm

New session times have also been announced for Waverton:

• Waverton Bowling Club
  Woolcott St, Waverton
  • Thursday 20th September, 2pm – 6pm
  • Saturday 22nd September, 10am – 2pm

More details about upcoming sessions at Balgowlah, Manly, Balmain and Northbridge will be posted here shortly.

The proposed reference design for the Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link has been released.

Find out more about the benefits to your area by attending one of our community feedback sessions. There is no need to make an appointment just drop in at anytime:

• Mosman RSL, 719 Military Rd, Mosman
  • Thursday 6 September, 2pm – 6pm
  • Saturday 8 September, 10am – 2pm
• Fred Hutley Hall (North Sydney Council), 200 Miller St, North Sydney
  • Thursday 13 September, 2pm – 6pm
  • Saturday 15 September, 10am – 2pm

Details will be announced shortly for Waverton, Balgowlah, Manly, Balmain and Northbridge.

The Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link project team is seeking your feedback on the proposed reference design.

Have your say at one of our community information sessions:

• Crows Nest Centre, 2 Ernest Place, Crows Nest
  • Thursday 30 August, 2pm – 6pm
  • Saturday 1 September, 10am – 2pm
• Mosman RSL, 719 Military Rd, Mosman
  • Thursday 6 September, 2pm – 6pm
  • Saturday 8 September, 10am – 2pm

There is no need to make an appointment just drop in at anytime.

We are seeking your feedback on the proposed reference design that was released last month.

You can learn more by dropping in to one of our upcoming community feedback sessions. There is no need to make an appointment just drop in at anytime.

You are invited to attend our first community session at Crows Nest:

• Crows Nest Centre, 2 Ernest Place, Crows Nest
  • Thursday 30 August, 2pm – 6pm
  • Saturday 1 September, 10am – 2pm

More sessions will be announced soon for Mosman, Waverton, North Sydney, Balgowlah, Manly and Balmain.

In March 2017, the NSW Government released a project concept and started detailed design work on the Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link project.

Since then, there has been extensive community engagement, geotechnical testing, field studies and market sounding with the finance and construction industries.

These project updates provide an overview of how the proposed designs have evolved, incorporating feedback from community and stakeholder groups over the past year.

• View or download the Western Harbour Tunnel Project update
• View or download the Beaches Link update