Transport and Roads
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13. Transport and Infrastructure 13-1 13.1 Roads and Traffic 13-1 13.1.1 Introduction 13-1 13.1.2 Existing Environment 13-1 13.1.3 Proposed Development 13-5 13.1.4 Construction Phase Traffic Impact 13-5 13.1.5 Operation Phase Traffic Impact 13-20 13.1.6 Traffic Impact Mitigation Measures 13-20 13.2 Infrastructure 13-21 13.2.1 Introduction 13-21 13.2.2 Existing Infrastructure and Facilities 13-21 13.2.3 Potential Infrastructure Impacts and Mitigation Measures 13-22 13.2.4 Summary of the Impacts on Infrastructure 13-24 13. Transport and Infrastructure 13.1 Roads and Traffic 13.1.1 Introduction This section describes the existing road network and intersections within the Project area. It also provides an assessment of potential construction and operational impacts associated with the Project and the associated activities and recommends mitigation measures. 13.1.2 Existing Environment 13.1.2.1 State-Controlled Roads The road network in the Project area is made up of State -Controlled roads that are controlled by the Department of Main Roads (DMR) and local roads controlled by Stanthorpe Shire Council (SSC). The Project area is situated in the Border District of the DMR. The principal State-Controlled roads within the Project area are presented in Table 13-1. Each of these roads is described below. Table 13-1 State-controlled Roads and Multi-Combination Vehicle Permits Permitted Maximum Size Road Name Category of Vehicle1 New England Highway National Highway 22C 23m and 25m B-doubles only (Warwick - Wallangarra) (AusLink road) 223 Stanthorpe Connection Road District road B-doubles <19m 224 Stanthorpe - Amosfield Road District road B-doubles <19m 232 Stanthorpe - Texas Road Regional road B-doubles <19m District road 2301 Amiens Road (between Thulimbah and Amiens B-doubles <19m only) Source: QT 2001 New England Highway (22C) – connects Warwick to Wallangarra and further north to Brisbane and south to Sydney as part of the Australian National Highway Network (AusLink National Highway 15); – is generally a two lane road with 100 km/h speed limit, frequent overtaking facilities and suitable shoulders each side of the road. Stanthorpe - Texas Road (232) – connects Stanthorpe to Texas; – two lane rural road with 100 km/h speed limit situated in flat to rolling terrain. Stanthorpe Connection Road (223) – runs through Stanthorpe township and connects to New England Highway north and south of Stanthorpe. – two lane urban road with 50/60 km/h speed limit. Amiens Road (2301) – connects New England Highway to Thulimbah and Amiens townships. – two lane rural road with 100 km/h speed limit situated in flat to rolling terrain; 13-1 13.1.2.2 Local Roads Roads within the Project area are either directly affected by the Project (roads with altered geometry/alignment or with changed designation/rank) or indirectly affected (road where works are performed in the road reserve and/or the traffic volumes are affected). Those roads within the Project area controlled by SSC which are directly impacted by the Project are: Fletcher Road – connects New England Highway to Emu Swamp Road and provides access to a few farms and wineries along it. The road is a narrow (4 to 5 m wide) rural unmarked road with some tight curves that restrict the sight distance at places. The road is 6 km long, partially sealed and partially subject to flooding at the Severn River causeway. The road intersects the Toowoomba - Wallangarra railway and no railway crossing barriers are provided. Emu Swamp Road – a largely sealed, low traffic rural road servicing farms and rural properties along its length. Stalling Lane – a low traffic, two lane rural road providing access to two rural properties and situated in rolling type terrain. State-controlled and local road networks within the Project area are presented in Figure 13-1. 13.1.2.3 Existing Traffic Volumes The Average Annual Daily Traffic volumes (AADT) (as vehicle trips per day –vpd) and the percentage of commercial (heavy) vehicles for 2005 on the State-controlled roads in the Project area are provided in Table 13-2 and marked on Figure 13-1. There were no available traffic counts on local roads in the Project area. Table 13-2 Actual Traffic Volumes DMR Traffic AADT Commercial Traffic Growth (%/year) Road Counting Site (vpd) Vehicles (%) 5 Years 10 Years New England 3 km south of 4,261 14 0.5% 2.3% Highway (22C) Stanthorpe Bypass (Warwick - 2 km north of Eukey 2,830 18 -0.2% 0.5% Wallangarra) Road (Ballandean) Stanthorpe 300 m north of New Connection Road 2,465 5 9.6% 6% England Highway (223) Stanthorpe - 400 m east of Amosfield Road Stanthorpe 1,832 7 N/A N/A (224) Connection Road Stanthorpe - 100 m west of New Texas Road 1,304 8 1.6% 0.5% England Highway (232) Amiens Road 2 km west of 725 14 8.2% 12.3% (2301) Thulimbah Source: DMR 2005 Traffic Census 13.1.2.4 Existing School Bus Services Figure 13-2 shows the school bus routes in the Project area. 13.1.2.5 Existing Recreational River Traffic The Severn River is an ephemeral stream with a number of weirs. There is limited opportunity for recreational boat use on the river. SSC permits jet skis, water skiing, power boats, and sail boats at Storm King Dam when sufficient water is available. 13-2 WARWICK SHIRE WARWICK SHIRE C INGLEWOOD 2 SHIRE STANTHORPE 2 SHIRE ! Pozieres NEW ! Stanthorpe SOUTH 2301 WALES Ballandean ! " ! Thulimbah 725 (14%) NEW SOUTH WALES Overview The Summit ! Amiens ! Applethorpe ! S TANT HOR 4 PE C 22 2 2 - T 1304 (5%) " " EX 1832 (7%) AS AD ! RO 3 STANTHORPE 232 2 2 " 2465 (5%) Y A W H IG Severnlea ! H C " 4261 (14%) 2 r 2 e iv R 7 0 ! 0 2 S / talli R Glen Aplin 2 ng d 1 mp / a 8 Sw D Ln 1 N : d A e u c m Dam L u E d G o r P er N Fletch E d x m Rd . 1 g i F _ c W i f E f a N DMR Roads r n T r _ " 8 e 1 v 2830 (18%) 22C - New England Highway 2 e 1 7 0 S \ (Warwick to Wallangarra) c i f f ! a 223 - Stanthorpe Connection Road r T Ballandean \ s 224 - Stanthorpe - Amosfield Road e r Girraween u g 232 - Stanthorpe - Texas Road i F National \ 2301 - Amiens Road D X Park M _ c r A \ l a i t a p S Legend \ 4 EMU SWAMP DAM EIS 5 " Traffic Count Sites 4 6 0 SSC Local Roads Network Project Area E Q \ s t DMR State Controlled Roads : c Figure 13-1 e 0 0.5 1 2 3 4 5 6 j o Project Area r P Existing Road Network \ Kilometres 2 Daily Traffic Flows V 725 1:150,000(at A4) Scale - and Traffic Volumes N (% of heavy vehicles) Projection: Map Grid of Australia Zone 56 E (14%) Q \ : I WARWICK SHIRE ! Pozieres NEW SOUTH WALES ! Thulimbah The Summit ! Amiens ! Applethorpe ! STA NTHO RPE - T EX AS D ! ROA STANTHORPE Y A W H IG Severnlea ! H r e iv R 7 0 ! 0 2 / Glen Aplin 2 1 / D 8 1 N : d A e c WARWICK L u d SHIRE G o r P N INGLEWOOD E d SHIRE x m STANTHORPE . 2 g SHIRE i F _ c ! W i f Stanthorpe E f a N r n T r _ e 8 1 ! v 2 Ballandean e 1 7 0 S \ c i f f ! a r T Ballandean \ s e r Girraween u g NEW SOUTH WALES i F National \ Overview D X Park M _ c r A \ l a i t a p School Bus Routes S \ 4 EMU SWAMP DAM EIS 5 P1273 P513 4 6 0 P1276 S34N Project Area E Q \ s P1491 S511N t : c Figure 13-2 e 0 0.5 1 2 3 4 5 6 j P1558 S677N o r P Existing School Bus \ P1872 S77 Kilometres 2 1:150,000(at A4) V Scale - Routes in the Project Area N P347 S229 Projection: Map Grid of Australia Zone 56 E Q \ : P350 I 13.1.3 Proposed Development Fletcher Road will constitute the main access road to the dam construction site. The road may be upgraded by the construction contractor to accommodate the construction traffic and it will be repaired and resurfaced at the completion of the Project to provide access to the proposed recreational facilities at the dam. Emu Swamp Road will be closed at the intersection with Fletcher Road and to the east of the impoundment area. Emu Swamp Road is not intended to be used for construction access to the site. As a result of this closure Stalling Lane will no longer be accessible from Emu Swamp Road. Stalling Lane currently provides access to two properties. To maintain this access, the Stalling Lane Access is proposed to be constructed from Fletcher Road to the western end of Stalling Lane. The location of the Stalling Lane Access is presented in Figure 3-4. 13.1.4 Construction Phase Traffic Impact 13.1.4.1 Dam Construction Traffic Generation For the daily traffic estimation purposes, the construction periods considered were between 6 AM to 6 PM, from Monday to Saturday for a period of: 56 weeks for the Urban Water Supply Dam; and 64 weeks for the Combined Urban and Irrigation Dam.