What the new Torrens to Darlington design means for each intersection along South Rd

The state government has finally revealed its $15.4bn design for the Torrens to Darlington project. Here’s what it means for each intersection – use our sliders to see the changes.

After a lengthy review, the state government has finally revealed its new, $15.4bn design for the Torrens to Darlington project. Here’s what it means for each intersection.

Northern tunnel – northern portal (Torrensville)

At the northern end of the project, a 12-metre elevated structure next to Brickworks Marketplace has been removed from the design.

Instead, a shorter structure has been incorporated into the design to take the road over the corner of the Hindmarsh Cemetery.

The motorway has been shifted to the east, which has resulted in changes to the location of properties required for acquisition.

Commercial properties on the eastern side of the road will now be required. In the section north of Kings Reserve, there will be 15 additional commercial properties that will be acquired, as well as two additional homes.

An elevated roadway near Brickworks Marketplace has been removed from the Torrens to Darlington designs.

The change means fewer homes on the western side of the road will need to be demolished.

On Jervois Ave, at West Hindmarsh, seven properties have been saved from acquisition and nine that were to be acquired now only need to be partially acquired. However, those owners have the option of having their properties fully acquired.

On intersecting Torrens Ave, one home has been saved and another two have been downgraded to partial acquisition.

The changes also mean that the project will not require as much of Kings Reserve.

Editor’s note - drag the cursor to see the before and after photos

Richmond Rd/James Congdon Drive/Sir Donald Bradman Drive

A new exit ramp has been added at James Congdon Drive/Deacon Ave for vehicles travelling north on the North-South motorway.

This will allow vehicles to access Adelaide Airport or the western suburbs without having to use the Anzac Hwy intersection.

An extra entry ramp at James Congdon Drive has also been added to the design, for traffic entering the motorway and travelling south.

The state government said the new ramps would improve travel times for motorists.

The changes will result in 32 new acquisitions in the area, including 23 commercial properties and eight homes. Among those will be partial acquisition of the RAA building on Richmond Rd.

Anzac Hwy intersection, Glandore, Kurralta Park and Ashford

The elevated single-lane off-ramp for traffic coming from the south has been scrapped from the design.

In its place, three ground-level right-turn lanes will allow traffic to exit the motorway and turn on to Anzac Hwy, which will then connect them to the city.

Three ground-level right-turn lanes will allow traffic to exit the motorway from the south and turn on to Anzac Hwy.

Additionally, right turns from Anzac Hwy on to South Rd have been added into the design – a change the government said was made based on “strong community feedback”.

This solution, designed to reduce traffic, will require the acquisition of 19 extra properties — 12 homes and seven commercial sites.

Southern tunnel – southern portal (Clovelly Park/Tonsley)

The southern entry/exit points of the southern tunnel have been shifted about 300m to the north in response to “a serious safety concern for merging and weaving traffic”.

This will also minimise the closure of the southern portion of the Darlington motorway, which had been estimated at six-to-nine months in the 2021 reference design, the government said.

A cross-corridor pedestrian/cyclist bridge would connect communities on each side of the motorway.

These changes will require acquisition of an extra 22 homes and eight commercial properties.

Elevated Brickworks roadway dumped from new design

The Brickworks Marketplace shopping centre has been spared from a blue snakelike structure soaring 12m immediately to the east as part of an elevated roadway.

Updated North-South corridor designs show the removal of the raised road, which featured a blue ribbon-like structure snaking along its eastern flank.

The motorway’s realignment to the east has allowed removal of the elevated structure next to the Brickworks, at the northern tunnel’s northern portal.

Most or all of the shopping centre would have been acquired under two shallow-tunnel options that were considered, but not adopted, for the taking the motorway under the River Torrens.

Four options were considered – two involving deep tunnel techniques with tunnel-boring machines and another two shallow-tunnel options using cut-and-cover techniques.

The latter two would have involved aquiring most or all of the Brickworks and diverting the River Torrens to enable construction.

Both options would have cost between $500m and $1bn extra.

– Paul Starick