New Forest Road Rail Bridge

30 June 2017

Tenders are now open to deliver a new bridge over the railway line at East Fork, to ensure safer passage for heavy vehicles travelling through the area.

Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Darren Chester said the new bridge at Forest Road would duplicate the existing bridge, turning each into a one-way road and eliminating the need for heavy vehicles to cross paths.

“The Australian Government is investing $1.25 million in this project under our Bridges Renewal Programme, which is upgrading local bridges around the nation to keep regional businesses and communities connected and thriving,” Mr Chester said.

New South Wales Minister for Roads, Maritime and Freight Melinda Pavey said construction of the bridge would take about 12 months and require intermittent bridge closures.

“The end result will make travelling through Orange much safer for all drivers. We are confident we can work with the tenderer to ensure unrestricted two-way traffic will be maintained for as long as practical during construction and keep the full closure of the bridge down to the minimum number of days,” Mrs Pavey said.

Federal Member for Calare Andrew Gee said at present, the existing two-way bridge could not safely support two heavy vehicles trying to turn into the tight bend, risking crashes and blockages along the south entry to the CBD.

“The new bridge will make it much easier for large transport vehicles to travel through Orange, better supporting business in the region, while increasing driver safety,” Mr Gee said.

Orange Mayor John Davis OAM said signage would be in place during construction, while regular media alerts and social media notifications would keep people informed of detour routes and closure of the bridge.

“Additionally, main users of the road such as Orange Health Service and Cadia Valley Operations will be notified of during traffic diversions. Pedestrians will be able to cross the existing bridge while it remains open,” Cr Davis said.

Work is expected to begin in late September after tenders close on Wednesday 9 August 2017.

The $2.5 million project, managed by Orange City Council, has received $1.25 million under the Australian Government’s Bridges Renewal Programme and $1.25 million under the NSW Government’s Restart NSW Fixing Country Roads program.

Proposed solutions aimed at limiting the traffic impact in one of Orange’s busiest streets when a new rail overpass bridge is built, have gone on-show for community comment.

The plans show a number of proposed detours for traffic on Forest Road when work begins later this year to build a new bridge over the railway line.

The $2.5 million project, being managed by Orange City Council, has received a total of $1.25 million in funding through the NSW Government’s Restart NSW Fixing Country Roads program and $1.25 million in funding provided by the Australian Government’s Bridges Renewal Program.

Orange Mayor John Davis said because it will take 12 months to complete the construction project, planning of detours and other ways to minimise the potential impacts is already well under way.

“In a project of this scale, some of the planning that happens to minimise the impact takes the shape of a thorough ‘Review of Environmental Factors’ (REF) assessment, “ Cr Davis said.

“This means a team of consultants looks at not only the bridge itself, but the potential problems that could happen during the construction phase.”

"They’ll be looking at factors including detours around the bridge site, and how best to manage traffic flow when the part of the road-way has to be closed.”

"We want to listen to community views on these matters so the whole REF will be up for comment. Residents and businesses in the area will have the opportunity to have their say."

Proposed detour maps released

The REF examines the Council’s plan to undertake the bridge construction while maintaining traffic through the worksite. With the exception of heavy vehicles, which would be required to detour around the work site, southbound traffic will be maintained through the work site for as long as practically possible and in consideration of Work Health and Safety.

When access across the bridges is closed, traffic would be diverted along Gardiner Road, Anson Street and the southern feeder Road, adding 1.08 kilometres to a journey.

Unrestricted two way traffic will be maintained for as long as practical. Full closure of the road will be necessary but limited to high risk activities such as crane lifts.

The details of the REF outline how traffic would be affected during different stages of the project.

The REF also confirms the council’s plan to evaluate construction tenders on criteria including the contractors’ ability to minimise disruption to all road users.

"Letters will go out to all adjacent property owners. There will be signs, message boards, meetings with Orange Heath Service, Cadia, Orange buses as well as emergency services. We'll be asking the media for assistance and using social media to communicate with residents about any road closures," Cr Davis said.

Construction work is expected to take about 12 months to complete with work in to begin September.

"This a major boost to transport infrastructure in Orange that will lead to much better access by heavy transport to these industrial areas. We’ll be asking for the patience of Orange residents when work gets underway but we’ll be doing all we can to minimise the impact of the project," Cr Davis said.

Make a comment about the REF

Community members are invited to read the Review of Environmental Factoprs (REF) on the project and make comment about any issue.

The Forest Road Bridge REF (1 MB) can be downloaded from this link.

Comments can be made by sending a formal submission to :

Orange City Council at

PO Box 35 Orange NSW 2800

or emailing to : council@orange.nsw.gov.au

Please include your name and contact details.

If your submission includes objections to aspects of the project, please include the grounds of your objection. All submissions will be evaluated and reported to the council, following the exhibition period. When available, both the report and the submissions may be viewed by any other person with an interest in the REF.

Comments can also be left on this YourSay site guestbook, or by leaving a comment at the end of this page.

DEADLINE:

The deadline for comments is Wednesday 17 May 2017.

14 April 2017

Orange residents are finding out more about the design of the new bridge to be built over the railway line on Peisley Street / Forest Road.

** There will be a new single lane bridge over the Broken Hill rail line, built on the eastern side of the existing bridge (which will be kept) with a two metre gap between them.

** The new bridge will become a single lane for southbound traffic. The older bridge will become the single lane for northbound traffic.

** There will be a 2.5 metre wide shared cycleway-footpath on the eastern side of the new bridge.

** Currently the old bridge is 9.5 metres wide and 19.4 metres long. The new bridge will be 12 metres wide and will be 30.9 metres long, as it will cover a wider section of railway track.

** Both traffic lanes will be able to carry heavy vehicles up to B-Doubles. Currently B-doubles have an 8 kilometre diversion around the site when they want to cross the railway line at Forest Road.

** The new structure will have 2.65 metre high ‘anti-throw screens’ installed to prevent someone on the bridge dropping items onto the rail tracks.

** The project will see about 2,600 cubic metres of clean fill and around 1,000 cubic metres of concrete brought to the site. This would bring a maximum of 13 heavy vehicles to the site each day along Peisley Street.

14 April 2017

Proposed solutions aimed at limiting the traffic impact in one of Orange’s busiest streets when a new rail overpass bridge is built, have gone on-show for community comment.

The plans show a number of proposed detours for traffic in Forest Road when works begins later this year to build a new bridge over the railway line.

The $2.5 million project, being managed by Orange City Council, has received a total of $1.25 million in funding through the NSW Government’s Restart NSW Fixing Country Roads program and $1.25 million in funding provided by the Australian Government’s Bridges Renewal Program.

Orange Mayor John Davis said because it will take 12 months to complete the construction project, planning of detours and other ways to minimise the potential impacts is already well under way.

“In a project of this scale, some of the planning that happens to minimise the impact takes the shape of a thorough ‘Review of Environmental Factors’ (REF) assessment, “ Cr John Davis said. “This means a team of consultants looks at not only the bridge itself, but the potential problems that could happen during the construction phase.”

"They’ll be looking at factors including detours around the bridge site, and how best to manage traffic flow when the part of the road-way has to be closed," Cr Davis said.

"We want to listen to community views on these matter so the whole REF will be up for comment. Residents and businesses in the area will have the opportunity to have their say."

Proposed detour maps released

The REF examines the Council’s plan to undertake the bridge construction while maintaining traffic through the worksite.

With the exception of heavy vehicles, which would be required to detour around the work site, southbound traffic will be maintained through the work site for as long as practically possible and in consideration of Work Health and Safety.

When access across the bridges is closed, traffic would be diverted along Gardiner Road, Anson Street, Tynan Street and the Southern feeder Road, adding 1.08 kilometres to a journey.

Unrestricted two way traffic will be maintained for as much as practical. Full closure of the road will be necessary but limited to high risk activities such as crane lifts.

The details of the REF outline how traffic would be affected during different stages of the project.

The REF also confirms the council’s plan to evaluate construction tenders on criteria including the contractors’ ability to minimise disruption to all road users.

"Letters will go out to all adjacent property owners. There will be signs, message boards, meetings with Orange Heath Service, Cadia, Orange buses as well as emergency services. We'll be asking the media for assistance and using social media to communicate with residents about any road closures," Cr Davis said.

Construction work is expected to take about 12 months to complete.

"This a major boost to transport infrastructure in Orange that will lead to much better access by heavy transport to these industrial areas. We’ll be asking for the patience of Orange residents when work gets underway but we’ll be doing all we can to minimise the impact of the project," Cr John Davis said.

Construction of the new railway bridge at Forest Road is expected to take 12 months but planners of the project will be working hard to keep the existing bridge open for as long as possible during that time, according to Orange Mayor, John Davis, OAM.

The new bridge on Peisley Street, at East Fork, will be wider to make it simpler for heavy transport, such as B-Doubles, to use the bridge.

"The $2.5 million project to upgrade the railway bridge in Forest Road is going to be a huge investment in the infrastructure of Orange," Cr Davis said.

"It’s being funded 50/50 between Orange City Council , the NSW Government’s Restart Program and the Federal Government’s Bridges Renewal program.

"The project is in the final design stages before it goes out to tender in the coming months."

Part of the process of choosing the right tenderer for the job, will involve looking at each company's proposals to minimise impact on local traffic flow during the project, Cr Davis said.

Construction work is expected to begin in this financial year and take about 12 months to complete.

"We’ll be asking for the patience of Orange residents when work gets underway but we’ll be doing all we can to minimise the impact of the project," he said.

Part of the planning that happens to minimise the impact takes the shape of a thorough ‘Review of Environmental Factors’ (REF) assessment.

This means a team of consultants looks at not only the bridge itself, but the potential problems that could happen during the construction phase.

"They’ll be looking at factors including detours around the bridge site, and how best to manage traffic flow when the roads and parts of the roads need to be closed," Cr Davis said.

"We want to listen to community views on these matter so the whole REF will be up for comment later this month and residents and businesses in the area will have the opportunity to have their say."

Once plans are in place there will be consultation with those directly affected by the project such as businesses adjacent to the construction as well as Cadia and Orange Health Service.

"Letters will go out to all adjacent property owners. There will be signs, message boards, meetings with Orange Heath Service, Cadia, Orange buses as well as emergency services. We'll be asking the media for assistance and using social media to communicate with residents about any road closures," Cr Davis said.

July 2016

Orange mayor John Davis has welcomed the NSW Government announcement of funding to build a new bridge over the railway line in Forest Road.

“The NSW Government announcement of $1.25 million matches the earlier announcement of funding from the Australian government.”

“This $2.5 million project will be a major boost to a key north-south transport link for Orange residents,” Cr John David said.

“At the moment due to the tight bend on the existing bridge if two heavy vehicles meet they cannot pass.”

“Cr Davis said the new bridge will be re-aligned to make it simpler for heavy transport to use the bridge.”

The project is now in its final design stages and negotiations are continuing with John Holland Rail over the details of the project.

“It’s expected work would begin early in the new year,” Cr David said.

The bridge works is part of a $4.3 million package for three projects in the central west region, announced by NSW parliamentary secretary Sarah Mitchell.

The funding is from round two of the Fixing Country Roads initiative, which is aimed at removing freight pinch points in regional NSW.

The remaining projects include upgrades to Middle Trundle Road in the Parkes Shire and an upgrade to the route between the Newell Highway and a grain handling facility at Wirrinya.

Ms Mitchell said the upgrade will open up a new Higher Mass Limit capable road train route and provide a more direct route for producers accessing rail to port, with distance savings of up to 37km per trip.

“The NSW Government is investing historic levels of funding to build better infrastructure right across NSW, and it’s great to see local communities in the Orange electorate benefitting from programs like Fixing Country Roads,” Ms Mitchell said.

“260 million tonnes of freight are moved across regional NSW each year – improving the way we do this is vital to supporting continued growth across the state.

BRIDGING; The new bridge on Forest Road will make travel safer and easier for large vehicles like this bus