Delays at one of Sutherland Shire’s biggest traffic bottlenecks may worsen when road work starts within weeks for the South Village development at Kirrawee.
The work, being undertaken by development partners Deicorp and Payce at the former brick pit site, will be on Princes Highway, Oak Road and Flora Street.
Commencement dates will be advised when approvals have been received from various government agencies.
A project spokesman said all parking for the 749 apartments and shopping centre would be in a basement car park, and the design would ensure ample vehicular and pedestrian access.
The road work will create a left-turn slip lane on the south-bound side of highway, providing direct access to the basement car park and ground level internal roads.
There will be a left-in / left-out access on Oak Road that provides direct access to the ground level roads with onward connections to the basement car park.
The slip lane on Oak Road will be on private land.
In Flora Street, a number of access driveways will be constructed to provide direct access to the basement car park and ground level roads.
The existing roundabout at the intersection of Oak Road and Flora Street will be upgraded with traffic lights, including signalised pedestrian crossings on all approaches
The spokesman said a a traffic plan would assist minimise disruption during construction.
“Every effort will be made to minimise delays [but] it is vital that this work is done to ensure that traffic can flow smoothly when the project is completed,” he said.
“The road works will be done in stages to minimise disruption as much as possible.
“Much of the work will be done on the boundary of the site, reducing disruption on the local road network.
“The work program will also aim to minimise any disruption during peak periods.”
The spokesman said Deicorp was confident the work, in conjunction with council traffic upgrades and the state government’s Gateway to the South pinch point program, would ensure traffic congestion was eased in the area.
Before the 2015 state election, the Coalition promised to upgrade the interersction of Princes Highway and Oak Road, as well as the intersection of Old Princes Highway and Acacia Road North, Kirrawee.
There has been no announcement since then about when the work will be carried out.
The project spokesman said South Village would deliver significant benefits to the local community.
“This is a project which will provide a place to eat, live, shop, work and play,” he said.
“There will also be over 1500 direct and indirect jobs created during construction and hundreds of permanent jobs will be established in the retail sector.”
A spokeswoman for Sutherland Shire Council said the council was liaising with the project partners in informing the community about the changes and, where possible, ensure any impacts were minimised.
“It is anticipated the initial works will take place along Princes Highway under the supervision of the Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) before progressing into Oak Road, and then continuing south to the intersection with Flora Street,” she said.
“Additional work to increase the capacity of the local stormwater network will also be taking place along Flora Street, with some parking along the development frontage expected to be affected.
The spokeswoman said the project required approvals from multiple agencies, including RMS, Office of Environment and Heritage, Sydney Water, Ausgrid and the council.
“Once the necessary approvals have been finalised, commencement dates will be confirmed and further information will be made available,” she said.
