21 November 2016

How long will Cotter Road Stage 2 take?

| CrankyCanberran
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Cotter Road duplication

I’m sure a number of you saw the “Cotter Road duplication commencing mid October, weather permitting” electronic sign on the side of the road back in early October. It’s now 4 weeks later and they’ve had some amazing progress. They’ve constructed a sign advising of the works, put up temporary fencing on one side of cotter road a week or so ago, and as of yesterday, seem to be cutting down some trees.

I can’t wait to see how long this is going to take this time around. How it takes so long to build a road in Canberra I don’t know, they smash them up in Asia in a matter of a couple months. Watching the strung out Constitution Avenue “duplication” is amazing – one day one set of contractors is pouring concrete, the next another set of contractors is digging/cutting it up. Surely these projects can be much better managed and coordinated. For example, the preferred tram line is running up Constitution Avenue, whilst they’re STILL building that stretch of road and have impacted drivers for years, guess they’ll rip up parts again to lay the tracks instead of doing it at the same time and cause another couple years disruption. Well done guys.

Instead of choking roads during roadworks and converting 1 lane into two way to keep traffic flowing, make it safer for the workers and faster overall for everyone and SHUT the road completely. I’d be more than happy using alternative routes (which of course will get a bit busier with the added traffic) however would still save everyone time and money.

Shutting the road gives the workers have full access to the work site without cars traversing it, can rip everything up at the same time and get it done so much faster. On top of this, why do they not do shift work to get it done 24/7? Building the bridge at Yarralumla Creek is well away from houses, getting it done 24 hours a day shouldn’t have any concerns. Even if they don’t shut the road, shut it after hours and smash out the works and just get them done. Of course there’s an added cost of paying people night wages/etc, however if they can finish the project in 3 months instead of 2.5 years, then the company can go do more works elsewhere and they’ll be financially much better off.

Sportsbet odds of Stage 2 being completed within 24 months is currently at $5 🙂

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JimCharles said :

The interesting thing about Constitution Avenue is that if you’re coming out of the city, you can’t turn right to access the big open car parks, it just guides you straight past them all and you end up going across Anzac Parade towards Russell. WTF?
An absolute mess of a design, trees planted in front of traffic lights which is just dangerous, pedestrians cutting across the middle of the planted area to get across the road, bus stops with no splay on the kerbs so the bus sticks out into the bus lane, stopping other buses from passing, prohibited U Turn signs appearing as they realise the only way cars can access the car parks is to pull a Ueey across the traffic and come back the other way.

I’ve never seen anything like it in a first world nation, you could have built it faster by hand using wheelbarrows and carrying your own materials around. Week after week, blokes hanging roung putting out random temporary bollards and redoing work, clearing the same drains, piffling around with shovels.

Barton Highway roundabout is the same..the Germans would have done that job in about 4 weeks, this thing looks like they’re making it up as they go along with no clear idea what they’re doing or how to do it. It’s an embarrassment.

It sounds as if it will win a few awards for excellence then.

The interesting thing about Constitution Avenue is that if you’re coming out of the city, you can’t turn right to access the big open car parks, it just guides you straight past them all and you end up going across Anzac Parade towards Russell. WTF?
An absolute mess of a design, trees planted in front of traffic lights which is just dangerous, pedestrians cutting across the middle of the planted area to get across the road, bus stops with no splay on the kerbs so the bus sticks out into the bus lane, stopping other buses from passing, prohibited U Turn signs appearing as they realise the only way cars can access the car parks is to pull a Ueey across the traffic and come back the other way.

I’ve never seen anything like it in a first world nation, you could have built it faster by hand using wheelbarrows and carrying your own materials around. Week after week, blokes hanging roung putting out random temporary bollards and redoing work, clearing the same drains, piffling around with shovels.

Barton Highway roundabout is the same..the Germans would have done that job in about 4 weeks, this thing looks like they’re making it up as they go along with no clear idea what they’re doing or how to do it. It’s an embarrassment.

rijujacob said :

Why does it need a duplication , is there that much traffic in that road. just wondering..

Growth of Molongolo, and yeah it is a busy road and it is a missing bit smack in the middle.

Why does it need a duplication , is there that much traffic in that road. just wondering..

I thought someone had made a mistake when I saw a sign on Mugga Lane saying roadworks from “February to July”. But July became August. It’s now late November, and still 40 KMH roadwork limits still in place.

bj_ACT said :

rommeldog56 said :

If its anything as long as the Ashley Drive duplication in Tuggeranong, I wouldn’t hold your breath. Strangely, there was a flurry of activity (most notable was construction of a wooden sound wall/fence on the Gowrie side) in the run up to the ACT LA election – then almost nothing since. It took 2 elections for ACT Labor/Greens to honor their promise to duplicate Ashley Drive – and still the last 150 metres or so to Johnston Drive wont be done.

Also, the works to improve the approach lanes to & the roundabout @ the intersection of Sternberg and Erindale drive and small duplication from there to the next roundabout at Ashley Drive, seem to have taken years – with extended periods of non activity.

Good luck……

Ahhhhh Ashley Drive, the busiest single lane road in Canberra with 25,000 cars per day. Like many of the single lane main roads of Tuggeranong they were planned, designed, had dedicated space and bridge pylons and were meant to be dual lane by the 90s. But self-government (and this is both main parties and various chief ministers fault) re-directed funding & priorities to other roadwork projects in Canberra in the late 80s early 90s.

ACT Labor first talked again about Duplication of Ashley Drive before winning election in the early 2000s, they promised it in interviews just before a few more Elections and then Katy Gallagher proudly announced ” That’s why if re-elected in 2012, ACT Labor will invest $19.6 million to fund stage 2 of the upgrade and duplication of Ashley Drive between Erindale Drive and Johnson Drive.” It will have a locked in Budget Funding and would be built in 2014 and finished in 2015.

Now it’s almost 2017 and still they haven’t actually started any real roadwork, just before the recent election they put in some white markers, a dodgy wooden fence and did 3 media launches.
http://www.katygallagher.net/act_labor_to_invest_19_6_million_to_further_upgrade_and_duplicate_ashley_drive
– Then pushed back a bit and re-announced…
http://citynews.com.au/2015/ashley-drive-to-be-duplicated-to-ellerston-avenue/
– Then re-launched again by the new roads minister a few months ago
http://citynews.com.au/2016/ashley-drive-duplication-underway/

Expect in response the usual “what would the Liberals have done?” from the usual Labor apologists.

rommeldog56 said :

If its anything as long as the Ashley Drive duplication in Tuggeranong, I wouldn’t hold your breath. Strangely, there was a flurry of activity (most notable was construction of a wooden sound wall/fence on the Gowrie side) in the run up to the ACT LA election – then almost nothing since. It took 2 elections for ACT Labor/Greens to honor their promise to duplicate Ashley Drive – and still the last 150 metres or so to Johnston Drive wont be done.

Also, the works to improve the approach lanes to & the roundabout @ the intersection of Sternberg and Erindale drive and small duplication from there to the next roundabout at Ashley Drive, seem to have taken years – with extended periods of non activity.

Good luck……

Ahhhhh Ashley Drive, the busiest single lane road in Canberra with 25,000 cars per day. Like many of the single lane main roads of Tuggeranong they were planned, designed, had dedicated space and bridge pylons and were meant to be dual lane by the 90s. But self-government (and this is both main parties and various chief ministers fault) re-directed funding & priorities to other roadwork projects in Canberra in the late 80s early 90s.

ACT Labor first talked again about Duplication of Ashley Drive before winning election in the early 2000s, they promised it in interviews just before a few more Elections and then Katy Gallagher proudly announced ” That’s why if re-elected in 2012, ACT Labor will invest $19.6 million to fund stage 2 of the upgrade and duplication of Ashley Drive between Erindale Drive and Johnson Drive.” It will have a locked in Budget Funding and would be built in 2014 and finished in 2015.

Now it’s almost 2017 and still they haven’t actually started any real roadwork, just before the recent election they put in some white markers, a dodgy wooden fence and did 3 media launches.
http://www.katygallagher.net/act_labor_to_invest_19_6_million_to_further_upgrade_and_duplicate_ashley_drive
– Then pushed back a bit and re-announced…
http://citynews.com.au/2015/ashley-drive-to-be-duplicated-to-ellerston-avenue/
– Then re-launched again by the new roads minister a few months ago
http://citynews.com.au/2016/ashley-drive-duplication-underway/

If its anything as long as the Ashley Drive duplication in Tuggeranong, I wouldn’t hold your breath. Strangely, there was a flurry of activity (most notable was construction of a wooden sound wall/fence on the Gowrie side) in the run up to the ACT LA election – then almost nothing since. It took 2 elections for ACT Labor/Greens to honor their promise to duplicate Ashley Drive – and still the last 150 metres or so to Johnston Drive wont be done.

Also, the works to improve the approach lanes to & the roundabout @ the intersection of Sternberg and Erindale drive and small duplication from there to the next roundabout at Ashley Drive, seem to have taken years – with extended periods of non activity.

Good luck……

wildturkeycanoe said :

I will estimate vehicles using both dual lanes in both directions in around September 12th, 2018. I think Sportsbet is stretching the odds a bit too far, but then you have to remember how long it took to replace some ceiling tiles in the Acton tunnel.

Well, only the white pegs and some fencing will go in about then, along with a the usual “hard hat/hi-vis vest” photo opportunity to remind us how they keep their promises

Remember that old saying, “a job started is half finished”?.

wildturkeycanoe6:32 am 22 Nov 16

I will estimate vehicles using both dual lanes in both directions in around September 12th, 2018. I think Sportsbet is stretching the odds a bit too far, but then you have to remember how long it took to replace some ceiling tiles in the Acton tunnel.

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