Kamilaroi Highway safety upgrade on track

The $26.4 million Kamilaroi Highway safety upgrade from Baan Baa to Turrawan is on track for completion by June 2023.

“Work on the final part, section four, is now expected to start in October with tree clearing and drainage work to start from August, weather permitting,” a spokesman for Transport for NSW said.

“The Kamilaroi Highway safety upgrade has been undertaken in four sections: Stage one was the upgrade of 4km stretch south east of Turrawan Road, stage two saw the upgrade of a 3.52km stretch including construction of pull-over bay for oversized vehicles, stage three included an upgrade of road including dual 1.8-kilometre overtaking lanes.

“The final stage, stage four, sees upgrade of the road south of the overtaking lanes in section three to Baan Baa. We are currently reviewing the design to include a pull-over bay for southbound heavy vehicles as a result of community feedback.

“Transport for NSW resources have been impacted by flooding earlier this year and work on section four which was scheduled to begin this month has been delayed due to crews being diverted to heavy patching across the state”, a spokesperson said.

Following a route safety review of the Kamilaroi Highway, the NSW government is funding the $26.4 million upgrade to boost safety on the 17km stretch between Baan Baa and Turrawan under the Safer Roads Program.

“Between July 2012 and October 2019, there were 18 crashes recorded, resulting in four fatal crashes, seven serious injury and four moderate injury crashes,” Transport for NSW reported.

“A high proportion of these crashes, seven, involved vehicles crossing the centre line of the road; recorded as either run off road to the right, or head-on crashes.

“These alarming numbers triggered significant investment under the Saving Lives on Country Roads program.

“The government developed the Saving Lives on Country Roads program to help address the disproportionate number of fatalities on country roads.

“In 2014, Transport for NSW, in collaboration with Centre for Road Safety, completed a Route Safety Review of the Kamilaroi Highway. This review identified the need to review the road network infrastructure and enhance road user behaviour campaigns, especially those targeting driver behaviour, speeding and fatigue between Baan Baa and Turrawan.

“The crash history for Baan Baa to Turrawan features a high incidence of cross centre line and run off road into an object crashes, so the NSW government has funded this important safety project to increase the separation of oncoming vehicles, alert drivers when they leave a lane and provide a more forgiving road environment for when people make
mistakes.

“Safety treatment works recommended and approved for installation include lifesaving flexible barriers, wide centre lines, audio tactile line marking and other safety devices to help prevent run off road and head-on crashes. As a result of an extensive community consultation process, it was identified that there is a need for the inclusion of overtaking lanes to compensate for lack of overtaking opportunities.

“Dual overtaking lanes have now been incorporated into the final design and are planned for installation during section two.

“Following consultation with the freight industry, it was also noted that this section of the Kamilaroi Highway is a common thoroughfare for Over Size Over Mass (OSOM) vehicles. Because of this, we have incorporated a 2.5m sealed shoulder into the design to allow vehicles carrying wide and heavy loads to pull over which will be constructed as part of stage two.

“Other safety measures incorporated into the project include: wide centreline and flexible centre wire rope barrier to reduce the likelihood of head-on crashes, designated offline school bus turning bay near the Turrawan Road intersection to improve safety for school children and other travellers, addition of dual overtaking lanes, five metre wide sealed shoulder providing more room for vehicles to recover whilst remaining on a sealed surface, rumble strips on centre and outside lines to reduce the likelihood of head-on crashes and run off road crashes, widened clear zone on roadside to improve visibility and reduce run off road into an object crashes as well as raised retroflective pavement markers to improve delineation.”