newy.com.au – Hunter motorists are being warned to allow extra travel time as increased wind farm deliveries and roadworks create the risk of delays at several points between the Port of Newcastle and the Central West.
Transport for NSW’s warning covers the week beginning Monday, September 7, with oversized or heavy loads travelling from the port to Uungula Wind Farm six days a week. Maintenance and upgrade projects are also under way along the Pacific, New England, Golden and Castlereagh highways.
Short road closures may be required for lane widening on the Golden Highway near Barnett Street at Merriwa. Delays of up to 10 minutes are listed at several other work sites, with the agency warning that separate hold-ups could add up for motorists travelling through multiple affected areas.
Closer to Newcastle, work includes the intersection upgrade at Industrial Drive and Vine Street, Mayfield, and the M1 Pacific Motorway extension to Raymond Terrace. Short delays are also flagged at the Golden Highway and Mitchell Line of Road upgrade at Mudies Creek, while slope stabilisation work continues on the Golden Highway near Putty Road.
On the Golden Highway west of Denman Bridge, roadworks are expected to cause five-minute delays. At Sandy Hollow, construction of a pull-over bay near Cowan’s Bus Service could hold up traffic for up to 10 minutes, while separate roadworks near Peberdy’s Road will operate under stop/slow traffic control.
Further west, motorists could face delays of up to 10 minutes at each of two pull-over bay construction sites: near Tongy Lane at Uarbry and east of Back Creek at Leadville. The same delay is expected at intersection works where the Castlereagh and Golden highways meet at Dunedoo.
The warning concerns the combined effect of road maintenance, construction projects and increased large-load deliveries, rather than a single disruption. Transport for NSW said traffic changes needed to carry out the work safely could cause unavoidable cumulative delays despite efforts to minimise the impact.
Motorists should plan their journeys, allow extra time and follow directions from traffic controllers and pilot vehicles. Roadwork schedules may change because of weather or other conditions.
The Live Traffic NSW app carries updates for individual work sites, with users able to select an incident and choose ‘Follow’ to receive notifications on their phones. Uungula Wind Farm’s delivery schedule is available on Squadron Energy’s website.
