New bridge, safer roads ‘opened’

The official opening of the upgrade and re-alignment of traffic ‘black spots’ at two shire roads’ intersections and the new Bullawa Creek bridge was applauded on Wednesday morning.

Narrabri Shire mayor Darrell Tiemens and Member for Barwon Roy Butler joined the NSW Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Jenny Aitchison who declared the new developments ‘officially open’.

The three major projects were long sought by the community.

Minister Aitchison spoke of a range of ongoing government initiatives to reduce trauma on the road – accidents in regional NSW are disproportionately high – and covered issues from drivers’ use of mobile phones, new detection cameras to enforce the wearing of seatbelts and road improvements.

The Minister noted thousands of drivers each year are stopped by police for not wearing seat belts.

An ever-growing volume of traffic, and its age, meant the former timber Bullawa Creek bridge was long overdue for replacement.

The new bridge provides two traffic lanes, a load capability well in excess of the eight tonne limit of its predecessor and much greater capability during flood times.

“The new, larger capacity bridge means a lot to the Eulah Creek and wider shire community,” said the mayor.

The bridge has been in use for some time, but the Minister’s visit was the opportunity to underline its importance with an official opening ceremony.

The new $2.75 million bridge, fully funded by the NSW government, replaces the second last timber bridge in Narrabri Shire.

The opening ceremony’s proceedings were introduced with a ‘Welcome to Country’ in English and Gamilaraay language by Patti Lettice.

The Minister spoke of the successful outcomes for projects in the shire which were the product of collaboration and communication between Narrabri Shire Council, Member for Barwon Roy Butler and the NSW government.

The Minister also officially opened the re-aligned Old Gunnedah Road-Kaputar Road intersection and the re-configured Old Narrabri Road-Turrawan Road intersection, nowadays a very busy corner serving the area’s coal mines as well as its ordinary local traffic volume.

The Old Narrabri Road-Turrawan Road intersection had long been a safety concern and in 2022, Narrabri Shire Council voted for its upgrade.

A report tabled by council’s infrastructure delivery director Eloise Chaplain at the June 2022 council meeting, described the intersection as ‘sub-standard’ – it did not meet Transport for NSW or Austroads guidelines.

The two intersection upgrades, welcome safety developments for road users, received funding from the NSW government.

“We know locals have been concerned about these intersections for some time, with hundreds of vehicles using them each day,” Minister Aitchison said.

Member for Barwon, Roy Butler, welcomed the upgrades.

“It is great to see that the government has responded to the need for improvements.”

Mayor Tiemens thanked the NSW government for the funding support.

“These upgrades were essential for improving our region’s transportation links, and more importantly – the safety outcomes for all road users,” Cr Tiemens said.

“This funding has allowed council to upgrade some of the shire’s busiest intersections.”