Jingellic Road (Yarara Gap) Reconstruction Project Opening Ceremony

by | May 24, 2016 | Electorate | 0 comments

Jingellic Road (Yarara Gap) Reconstruction Project Opening Ceremony

Media Release

for immediate broadcast

19 May 2016

 Formal opening at Jingellic Road (Yarara Gap), commencing 10am Tuesday, 24 May 2016

Greater Hume Shire Council will formally open the Jingellic Road (Yarara Gap) Reconstruction Project at 10am on Tuesday, 24 May 2016.

The event will be attended by the Member for Albury, Greg Aplin MP, key stakeholders, Greater Hume Shire Council councillors and staff, as well as representatives of the contractor RECivil, the project manager GHD and the local community.

Greater Hume Shire Council is delighted that the reconstruction of the notorious 2.3  section of Jingellic Road (Yarara Gap) has been completed and motorists and transport industry are now benefitting from a much safer road with a widened road pavement and improved road gradient when traversing the gap.

“It’s been a long time coming,” said Mayor, Cr Heather Wilton.

“This vital reconstruction project means that the entire Holbrook-to-Jingellic route is trafficable by B-Double transports which will in turn deliver major economic benefits to the region and related savings to transport sector operators,” said Cr Wilton.

“It is expected that 30 new jobs and 100 indirect jobs will be generated as a result of the project.”

Council received $1,750,000 under the Australian Government’s Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program to provide access to B-Double trucks along the full length of the road from Holbrook to Jingellic. The project also received $750,000 in funding under the NSW Government’s Restart NSW Fixing Country Roads program.

“Greater Hume Shire Council committed over $1 million to the project,” said Cr Wilton.

Member for Farrer, Sussan Ley, commented that the focus of the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Programme is on improved safety and productivity outcomes for the heavy vehicle industry – and this reconstruction will enable better access and key linkages for this local road.

A feature of the project is that Council was able to satisfy the local community’s expectation that the road remain open to traffic during reconstruction, which was achieved for the entire 30 weeks of the project, with only short traffic delays. Community engagement efforts prior to the letting of the tender and during the project meant that affected residents were kept informed throughout by Council. The fact that the roadway remained open during the project met with high community approval.

Key outcomes from the project include:

  • Benefits to the softwoods supply chain, by enabling logging carriers to use B-Double vehicles instead of semi-trailers to cart sawn logs from the softwoods forests of the Upper Murray to the Ettamogah Rail Hub and Norske Skog paper mill north of Albury.
  • Benefits to the livestock industry by enabling livestock carriers to use a route they currently avoid due to safety concerns when travelling between Holbrook and the Upper Murray/Corryong saleyards.
  • Benefits to general freight carriers by enabling them to use B-Doubles when carrying goods from the Hume Highway to Tumbarumba.
  • Benefits to the freight industry and general public overall by providing a viable alternative route in the event that Tumbarumba Road is closed by fire, as happened in January 2014.

Additional benefits to the freight industry are delivered by providing a shorter alternative route from the Hume Highway at Holbrook to the Upper Murray , as well as by reducing costs through less wear-and-tear on vehicles because of a higher quality road surface.

Cr Wilton paid tribute to the support provided by neighbouring former Tumbarumba Shire Council and collaboration of Softwoods Working Group that resulted in the two successful grant applications.

Ends.