Adelaide tram right turn on North Terrace would cost $37m, Parliamentary Budget Advisory Service says

ADDING a right turn for trams on North Tce so that they can travel to the East End from King William St would cost an estimated $37 million, expert analysis has found.

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ADDING a right turn for trams on North Tce so they can travel to the East End from King William St would cost an estimated $37 million, expert analysis has found.

The State Government last year announced it would spend $80 million on an upgrade to deliver four new stops, one at Festival Plaza behind Parliament House and three along North Tce to service the museum and library precinct as well as universities and the East End.

However, it has drawn criticism for not permitting a right hand turn that would seamlessly connect services on the Glenelg line with the East End.

The North Terrace and King William Street intersection after the completed tram works. Picture: DPTI

Documents produced by the new Parliamentary Budget Advisory Service in response to an application by Greens MP Mark Parnell have estimated the cost of now inserting a right hand turn to the works, which have already been completed, would be $37 million. It declined a request to model a cost of including a right hand turn as part of the original build.

However, the PBAS also warns that its estimate for a new build is of “low reliability” and “detailed costing will need to be undertaken to deliver a better cost estimate”.

“To add a right turn, the full intersection will be reconstructed to adjust the plane of the entire intersection to an acceptable gradient,” PBAS chief executive John Hill reports.

“There are significant risks with the geometry of the intersection that impact whether trams could safely navigate through right hand turn movements.

“Costs associated with maintaining acceptable vehicle traffic flows through this intersection have not been estimated.”

Jos Valdman’s cartooon on the North Terrace tram.

Mr Parnell said the costing revealed the price of “not doing this job properly in the first place is $37 million” and Government excuses for not including a right turn “just don’t add up”.

“Whilst we don’t know the additional cost of doing the job properly earlier this month, it would most likely have been minuscule in terms of the overall project,” Mr Parnell said.

“Trams all over the world negotiate far more difficult terrain than this intersection.

“The Government should have swallowed its pride and planned for the future with all turns being accommodated, regardless of any immediate plans for specific services.”

Greens MP Mark Parnell.

Transport Minister Stephen Mullighan. Picture: Tricia Watkinson

Transport Minister Stephen Mullighan said the turn was not required for services on three new routes the works enabled: a city loop and extensions to Norwood and Prospect.

“Including the turn would have also required complex engineering solutions at a massive extra cost, for a redundant turning movement which would cause traffic delays for up to 60,000 vehicles using this intersection daily. It would also reduce the frequency of services to the East End as well,” he said.

“The only other site in the Southern Hemisphere that would have a similar intersection would be Balaclava Junction in Melbourne.”

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