Henry Lawson Drive Upgrade Stage 1A Part 4 Environmental impact statement July 2021 BLANK PAGE Transport for NSW Henry Lawson Drive Upgrade Stage 1A Part 4 Environmental impact statement July 2021 Prepared by Aurecon Australasia Pty Ltd and Transport for NSW [Transport for NSW Publication Number 21.158] Copyright: The concepts and information contained in this document are the property of Transport for NSW. Use or copying of this document in whole or in part without the written permission of Transport for NSW constitutes an infringement of copyright. Executive summary Acknowledgment of Country Transport for NSW acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land on which the Henry Lawson Drive Upgrade is proposed. We pay our respects to Elders, past and present and celebrate the diversity of the Aboriginal people and their ongoing cultures and connections to the lands and waters of NSW on which we build infrastructure, deliver projects and serve Transport’s customers. What is proposed? Transport for NSW is proposing to upgrade a 1.3 kilometre length of Henry Lawson Drive between Keys Parade, Milperra, to Tower Road, Bankstown Aerodrome (known as the Henry Lawson Drive Upgrade Stage 1A) (the overall proposal). The overall proposal would create two lanes in both directions along Henry Lawson Drive, including the duplication of the Henry Lawson Drive road bridge to the south of Auld Avenue (referred to as the Auld Avenue Bridge). Newbridge Road/Milperra Road intersection and the Tower Road intersection would be upgraded to provide additional right turn lanes. Auld Avenue intersection would be upgraded to a left-in, left-out arrangement. The overall proposal is subject to assessment under two planning pathways, a review of environmental factors (REF) under Part 5 of Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EP&A Act) and an environmental impact statement (EIS) under Part 4 of the EP&A Act. The majority of the overall proposal is subject to Part 5 and a REF has been prepared separately. However, small parts of the overall proposal fall on land mapped under the State Environmental Planning Policy (Coastal Management) 2018 (Coastal Management SEPP). As such that part of the proposal (referred to as the ‘EIS proposal’) is subject to approval under Part 4 of the EP&A Act and considered in this EIS. This EIS proposal is comprised of three discrete areas. The key features of the EIS proposal includes: EIS proposal area 1 – Henry Lawson Drive opposite Tower Road The key features of EIS proposal area 1 are: • Widening of Henry Lawson Drive northbound lanes • Installing of fill embankments along the edge of the new carriageway to meet existing ground levels • Extending existing stormwater culvert and installing outlet scour protection measures • Installing additional stormwater drainage infrastructure and water quality treatments • Installing a vegetated channel along the toe of the new fill embankment • Adjusting the existing shared path to suit the new re-alignment and to connect it back to the existing path • Installing road furniture, including road safety barriers. EIS proposal area 2 – Milperra Road opposite Bankstown Airport The key features of the EIS proposal area 2 are: • Installing a new bus stop relocated from its existing position on Milperra Road • Installing a section of a new footpath to the bus stop (connecting to the remainder of the new path to Henry Lawson Drive – REF proposal) Henry Lawson Drive Upgrade Stage 1A i Environmental impact statement • Installing fill embankments along the edge of the new carriageway to meet existing ground levels • Extending existing stormwater culvert and installing outlet scour protection measures • Installing additional stormwater drainage infrastructure connecting to the outlet of the extended culvert • Installing road furniture, including road safety barriers. EIS proposal area 3 – Henry Lawson Drive opposite Auld Avenue The key features of the EIS proposal area 3 are: • Removing of existing ancillary structures • Installing temporary fencing, flagging of exclusion boundaries and temporary erosion and sediment controls for use as an ancillary facility and construction area • Installing fill embankments along the edge of the new carriageway to meet existing ground levels • Stabilising the ground surface following the completion of construction to minimise erosion. What are the project objectives? The key objectives of the overall proposal include: • Improve travel times, journey time reliability and road safety outcomes for all road users • Improve freight efficiency and reduce vehicle operating costs on the road network • Support new development in the precinct by improving traffic flow and connectivity to Bankstown Airport, Milperra Industrial Estate and proposed residential development in the area and the surrounding road network in the south west of Sydney • Improve connectivity and safety for pedestrians and cyclists. The EIS proposal would support these objectives as part of the overall proposal. The increased capacity of the overall proposal would result in significant improvements in traffic delay and traffic volume throughput at the Milperra/Newbridge Road and Tower Road intersections. In conjunction with other stages of the Henry Lawson Drive upgrade, would ease existing traffic congestion issues and improve freight access between the M5 Motorway and Hume Highway). Extension of pedestrian and shared paths would improve connectivity and safety for active transport users. Why is it needed? Without the development of the overall proposal, road and traffic conditions within the overall proposal area that would continue into the future include: • Worsening congestion along the corridor causing frustrating and costly delays for all road users across spreading peaks • Poor driver behaviour in an unforgiving road environment contributing to a high rate of casualty crashes. How would the project satisfy this need? The overall proposal would provide: • Increased capacity to alleviate congestion and provide additional capacity to address future development. The overall proposal would provide two lanes in both directions and additional turn lanes at the Newbridge Road/Milperra Road intersection and Tower Road intersection. • Improved road environment to assist in the reduction of safety incidents. This includes provision of a concrete median separating opposing traffic direction. The EIS proposal is needed as an integral part of the overall proposal. Without the EIS proposal, the overall proposal would not be able to be constructed. Henry Lawson Drive Upgrade Stage 1A ii Environmental impact statement Why is it a Part 4 project? A small part of the proposal (0.285 hectares) falls on land mapped under the Coastal Management SEPP. As such, that part of the proposal is deemed designated development and is subject to approval under Part 4 of the EP&A Act. The EIS proposal requires consent from Canterbury Bankstown City Council and an EIS is required to be submitted as part of a Crown development application. This EIS has been prepared to address the requirements issued by the Secretary of the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) on 8 April 2020 and the relevant provisions of Schedule 2 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2000. What alternatives were considered? A range of strategic options were developed in response to the existing challenges on Henry Lawson Drive. Non-infrastructure and infrastructure solutions were identified and assessed through an Investment Logic Mapping (ILM) workshop conducted in November 2018. Of the strategic options, the ‘increase supply’ option (ie increase capacity of the road) was selected as it would best address the identified challenges experienced on Henry Lawson Drive. Following the selection of the ‘increase supply’ strategic option, a range of strategic options were investigated. In developing and investigating these options, it was identified that that the overall proposal site is highly constrained. These constraints have been considered and include coastal wetlands, threatened ecological communities, residential and commercial/retail properties, properties identified as Airport Land under Commonwealth ownership, and properties subject to Aboriginal land claims. Due to these constraints, total avoidance of impacts to coastal wetlands was not possible. A series of workshops were held to consider and compare three alternatives for the upgrading of Henry Lawson Drive. These included: • Alternative 1 – four lane widening (two lanes either direction) • Alternative 2 – four lane with a widened median to allow for six lanes in the future (two lanes either direction and allowance for a future third lane to be constructed within a widened central median) • Alternative 3 – six lane widening (three lanes either direction). The workshop concluded that Alternative 1 was the preferred option as traffic modelling showed it would sufficiently address the congestion problem within the foreseeable future. The selection of the preferred option is justified for the following main reasons: • Reduced acquisition impacts of residential properties compared to the other options. • Reduced impacts on utilities along the western side of Henry Lawson Drive south of Newbridge Road. • Improved geometry along Henry Lawson Drive compared to the other options. • The alignment would allow for future proofing of Henry Lawson Drive at the intersection with Newbridge Road and Milperra Road. This option allows for an additional through