Peak Hill

Transport for NSW have partnered with BMD and AECOM to form the Newell Highway Program Alliance.

The strategic partnership will deliver about 40 additional overtaking lanes in an estimated four years rather than the likely eight years it would take to fund and deliver this work using traditional procurement methods.

This innovative mode of delivery will result in a minimum of 60 kilometres of new overtaking lanes to improve safety, reduce travel times, allow more accurate travel planning and improve freight efficiency.

The new overtaking lanes are expected to provide around 33 minutes of travel time savings along the length of the Newell Highway from the Victorian to the Queensland border.

The new southbound overtaking lane extends for about 1.5 kilometres along the highway, about four kilometres south of Peak Hill between the intersections of Hervey Park Road in the north and Trewilga Road in the south.

The work was completed while maintaining two lanes of traffic for 97% of the construction time which greatly minimised the impact of the project work on the travelling public.

As a key feature during construction of the overtaking lane, the NHPA trialled the use of Variable Speed Limiting (VSL) signs – a first in the Western Region.

The advantage of this technology is the capability of changing speed zones instantly by a computer application, minising risks to workers and motorists through the more traditional method.

The VSL signs eliminate the need for traffic control workers to manually change the speed signs. Drivers also benefit from the improved visibility of the lit signs in poor light conditions and wet weather.

Once completed, road users travelling on the Newell Highway south of Peak Hill will experience increased overtaking opportunities to help improve journey reliability.

Other benefits of the project include:

• improved safety for all road users
• reduced travel times
• more accurate travel planning
• improved freight efficiency.