Brisbane Road and Infrastructure Projects

[Map Born]

Originally Posted by trentthomson

That leaves citybound commuters who live along the Mains Road corridor. For these guys they should build a new busway connection that bypasses the intersection, goes through Nathan campus and then to the existing Griffith University busway station. That could easily be achieved for $300 m and would provide far more benefits to the community.

Have a look at this entrance to Macgregor Delfin estate in street view:
http://maps.google.com.au/maps?q=Mai...title&resnum=1

Notice the set back from Mains Road? This is a long standing reservation for the South-West Corridor, will it ever be acted upon as per your suggestion is the big question?

The Delfin estate was conceptualised/built in the late 80's/early 90's and you'll note that major structures such as Sunny Park, Market Square & Pinelands shopping centres are all set back (car park clear space excepted).

It would be logical the South-West Corridor remains east of Mains Rd north of Kessels utilising service road space, remembering western constraints of the cemetery.

With the South-West Corridor, likely a busway to go under Kessels Rd/remain underground, the idea of Kessels under Mains thwarts the continuation of the busway - you wouldn't have a tunnel under a tunnel.

I put this comment to the Main Roads staff at a display day in early 2008 and was told anything for buses would have to be at grade at the intersection - what a compromise!

Originally Posted by trentthomson

Plus a new busway link from Upper Mt Gravatt busway station to Warrigal Rd, with 24 hour bus lanes down Warrigal Rd to a decent interchange at Fruitgrove station.

Have a look at the MPPL study, a similar idea of a bus only extension of Warrigal Rd north to Logan Rd is planned, but not as elaborate.

As an aside, what's really bad with the MPPL plans is the northbound freeway access will be moved even further south with a u-turn signalised halfway towards Miles Platting Rd. Originally, the northbound freeway access from Logan Rd southbound was before the northbound off ramp intersection, currently moved to that intersection as a u-turn at the lights.

[Marty_]

Originally Posted by Map Born

Locals I've spoken to have, unprompted, made comment that they're yet to be convinced by that.

I've driven the full length of Kessells Rd at least twice a week since I got my license. It used to be truck city. It was almost a little intimidating. It's nothing like it used to be - granted, there's quite a high volume of trucks, but nothing like before the cameras were put in.

The thing I hate about routes frequented by trucks is the divets in the road. It looks so shoddy

[trentthomson]

Originally Posted by Map Born

Have a look at this entrance to Macgregor Delfin estate in street view:
http://maps.google.com.au/maps?q=Mai...title&resnum=1

Notice the set back from Mains Road? This is a long standing reservation for the South-West Transport Corridor (SWTC), will it ever be acted upon as per your suggestion is the big question?

The Delfin estate was conceptualised/built in the late 80's/early 90's and you'll note that major structures such as Sunny Park, Market Square & Pinelands shopping centres are all set back (car park clear space excepted).

This is very interesting. I was only aware of a Nathan Arterial Rd that cut a southwesterly path from the freeway interchange around the back of the Cemetery. It appears in several planning documents for the Southeast Freeway, particularly maps pertaining to the Mains Rd interchange. Several designs were considered for that interchange, including a roundabout (of all things). All of them had an access to the Nathan Arterial Rd included.

The 1965 Brisbane Transportation Study makes no mention of any other corridor, in that plan the intention was to widen Mains Rd to four lanes with on-street parking and a median (which was what happened, except the parking lanes ended up as traffic lanes).



Note the BTS omits the Nathan Art Rd (it appears in plans from the 70s and 80s), it does however show the Griffith Arterial Rd, which links Kessels Rd to Orange Grove Rd via an arterial rd through Toohey Forest.

That said, I knew something fishy was going on here because not only are all those places you mentioned set back, but apparently the reason they built Warrigal Rd State School, Sunnybank Hills State School and Runcorn Heights State School was so that they could close down Runcorn State School (which is on Mains Rd and still going strong today, for non-locals). According to my year 7 teacher at SHSS, the closure of the school was necessary for a freeway that the MRD were considering along Mains Rd in the 1960s and 70s. I have yet to find any evidence of this, but this South West Arterial Rd was probably what she was referring to.

Also interesting to note is that Runcorn State School is set far back from the Beenleigh Rd/Mains Rd intersection -- even though the intersection has been widened to ten lanes!

So I guess my question for you is, where was this SWTC supposed to end up and what other info have you got!?

It would be logical the SWTC remains east of Mains Rd north of Kessels utilising service road space, remembering western constraints of the cemetery.

With the SWTC, likely a busway to go under Kessels Rd/remain underground, the idea of Kessels under Mains thwarts the continuation of the busway - you wouldn't have a tunnel under a tunnel.

Why not? If you placed the dive at Delfin Drive that's plenty of time to get down below any tunnel at Mains Rd. Although it'd mean the loss of the bus stop at Robertson (unless you placed it underground too or just canned the grade separation of Mains/Kessels altogether).

Any bus tunnel would need to be of a standard that allowed conversion to heavy rail. A two way busway tunnel could be converted into a single track heavy rail tunnel relatively easily, provided it was built properly in the first place!

I put this comment to the Main Roads staff at a display day in early 2008 and was told anything for buses would have to be at grade at the intersection - what a compromise!

Because this is Main ROADS. I have found their ideas for bus priority and public transport facilities in general to be very lackluster.

Have a look at the MPPL study, a similar idea of a bus only extension of Warrigal Rd north to Logan Rd is planned, but not as elaborate.

As an aside, what's really bad with the MPPL plans is the northbound freeway access will be moved even further south with a u-turn signalised halfway towards Miles Platting Rd. Originally, the northbound freeway access from Logan Rd southbound was before the northbound off ramp intersection, currently moved to that intersection as a u-turn at the lights.

I absolutely detest the U-turn bays on that section of Logan Rd. The whole interchange is f-ed up, even with the improvements proposed in the study. Back when the SE Freeway was being constructed the fast northbound onramp to the freeway made perfect sense, as this was where the majority of traffic would have transitioned from the Pacific Hwy to the SE Freeway pre-1985. Now the whole area is stuffed thanks to years of careless planning approvals by council. That stupid office park next to the freeway should have never gone ahead, and Miles Platting Rd should've been the access point to the freeway and the principal east-west route for that part of town.

If Main Roads would fix the interchange with the Gateway Motorway half of those so-called improvements proposed in the MMPL would be rendered obsolete. Logan Rd between Pacific Mwy and Gateway Mwy is nothing but a rat run for drivers moving between the two freeways. And if they built an interchange at Beenleigh Rd you would get rid of half the traffic on Warrigal Rd...

And while they're at it, how about south-facing ramps from Compton Rd onto the Gateway Mwy...

[Map Born]

Excitement on the inbound lanes of the freeway with the fourth lane from Cornwall St bridge to Stanley St offramp now in operation.

There's more asphalting to be done, so linemarking is patchy as has all the roadwork linemarking in this project, stark contrast to other projects eg. M1 upgrade leading up to 2000 between Loganholme and Nerang.

The three inbound lanes continue as usual however a left lane is added which directly takes cars down the Stanley St off ramp. There is a long solid line to mark this.

Despite VMS as far back as adjacent Wellers Hill soccer fields that the left lane is now off Stanley St only, Monday afternoon, I viewed drivers caught unaware, crossing the solid line to continue citybound.

The second lane on the Stanley St off ramp is not well marked with still the solid line from the former construction site exit onto this ramp.

North of Ipswich Rd, very wide shoulders exist which weren't previously there, a good improvement.

Despite this welcome increase of capacity, I read no mention of it on either Main Roads or Clem7 sites, you'd think it was something to crow about.

[Fyver]

Originally Posted by trentthomson

And while they're at it, how about south-facing ramps from Compton Rd onto the Gateway Mwy...

I asked this basic q awhile ago, and the answer i got was along the lines of "why provide access points at each crossover to a limited access road", well that was the jist of it anyways...

My guess was though it must force people onto the motorways via a toll somewhere...

[deranged]

So why not have the tolling on the ramps?

[Fyver]

Don't ask me, they have on the new Logan mwy ramps.

PS, Marty, I was refering to the intersection, aplogies if for any confusion, sometimes I do that in hast of typing..

[Map Born]

Contractors for the most western end of this project where it ties into Cunningham Hwy at Yamanto are this week to be installing signs at this interchange.

The road will be signed as Metroad 5.

The only overtaking lanes are in the 10 km section from Springfield to Ripley Road. 1 each way approaching the Swanbank roundabout. There will be none in the 5 km section west to South Deebing Ck Rd and naturally none in the final 3 km leg to Yamanto.

[chinaussiebabe]

I've seen heaps of guys are doing measuring along Kingsford Smith Drive and south end of Racecourse road since last week. Can anyone tell me what is going on?

[Map Born]

Yes, it's for the upgrade of this intersection.

http://roads.mipo.jsadigital.com.au/...Nudgee_Rd.aspx

[chinaussiebabe]

Originally Posted by Map Born

Yes, it's for the upgrade of this intersection.

http://roads.mipo.jsadigital.com.au/...Nudgee_Rd.aspx

You sure, darling? I saw they are doing the measuring along the WHOLE kingsford smith drive, started far from the breakfast creek end.

The work on that intersection seems finished already. I saw they were doing the road work at middle of night.

[Marty_]

The BCC website says work on the intersection was to begin last year. I'm not familiar with the project, but that would suggest to me that it's underway or finished.

There is a plan to widen the whole of Kingsford Smith Drive... Though I was under the impression it can't start for a while due to funding problems (and the prospect of partial funding from the federal government).

[Maroon Grown]

Originally Posted by Map Born

Contractors for the most western end of this project where it ties into Cunningham Hwy at Yamanto are this week to be installing signs at this interchange.

The road will be signed as Metroad 5.

as in M5 or 5 inside hexagon

[Map Born]

Yes, blue hexagon/Metroad old style.

[jchan123]

Originally Posted by Marty_

I've driven the full length of Kessells Rd at least twice a week since I got my license. It used to be truck city. It was almost a little intimidating. It's nothing like it used to be - granted, there's quite a high volume of trucks, but nothing like before the cameras were put in.

The thing I hate about routes frequented by trucks is the divets in the road. It looks so shoddy

As a local of the area, I have to agree with you, trunk numbers has dropped since the introduction of the camera.
But then, it made the other road, Miles Platting Rd more congested with trucks now
kind of just pushed the problem southward

[Map Born]

Originally Posted by chinaussiebabe

You sure, darling? I saw they are doing the measuring along the WHOLE kingsford smith drive, started far from the breakfast creek end.

The work on that intersection seems finished already. I saw they were doing the road work at middle of night.

That's true too, all east of the ICB is being studied ahead of upgrades of ~$200 million.

[Fyver]

Originally Posted by jchan123

As a local of the area, I have to agree with you, trunk numbers has dropped since the introduction of the camera.
But then, it made the other road, Miles Platting Rd more congested with trucks now
kind of just pushed the problem southward

Yep, I should have kept the old Southern Star articles about some politician having a cow about how he can't sleep blah blah blah. I Followed a truck the full length of Algester Rd yesterday, running compression braking at every intersection - thats throught he middle of the suburb, and just to rat run, I really hope he was lost. We get so many trucks now, been living there for over 30 years (I can be one of those people who can infact say I was there before the Logan motorway was built, not moved there and then complain about it) and its never been worse, listen to the radio in the morning there's nearly an accident every day involving a truck somewhere around Heathwood/Stapylton Rd/Beaudesert Rd etc.

Not bagging trucks, they're just doing their job, but poor planning and impact studies should be blamed.

[KJBrissy]

Click the link and check out the spaghetti we'll be getting at the connection of the Clem 7 and Airport Link!

http://www.brisconnections.com.au/po...ment%20map.pdf

[beastjim]

The Vomitron.

[Marty_]

You can pretty much transition between any of the Clem7, Airport Link or ICB regardless of which road you're on and which direction you're travelling in. Plus there's a few connections to surface roads for good measure. Oh - and a busway