Ballina bypass full steam ahead

IT'S FULL steam ahead for the Ballina bypass, with traffic to be diverted on to the Cumbalum interchange next Wednesday.

Ballina bypass construction work on the Pacific Highway near the Ross Lane interchange. On Wednesday traffic will be diverted on to the Cumbalum interchange. Picture: DAVID NIELSEN

IT’S FULL steam ahead for the Ballina bypass, with traffic to be diverted on to the Cumbalum interchange next Wednesday.

The Ballina Bypass Alliance’s community relations manager, Sanjin Muhic, said the changes would take place north of Deadmans Creek Road.

“Pacific Highway traffic will be permanently switched on to a newly-built deviation on the eastern side of the new highway between Deadmans Creek Road and the new floodplain bridges at Cumbalum,” he said.

“This will allow for construction of the new permanent alignment of the bypass north of Emigrant Creek at this location.”

An extra half a kilometre of the Pacific Highway will now be upgraded as part of the Ballina bypass project.

It would have been part of the Tintenbar to Ewingsdale upgrade, but the Department of Planning this month approved the Ballina Bypass Alliance to do the work.

Mr Muhic said it would provide a ‘safer connection’.

“It will facilitate an easier continuation of the Tintenbar to Ewingsdale upgrade,” he said.

“Due to the late addition of this scope of works, we hope to have it completed by early 2011.

“It will provide better design outcomes for the project.”

Other work remains on track for the entire 12km dual carriageway to be completed by the end of 2012.

Controlled blasting of the solid basalt rock at the northern end of the bypass should be finished by the end of next month.

Mr Muhic also said there had been successful paving trials at Upper Sandy Flat, near the Ross Lane bridge, and this would be followed by landscaping works.

Soil settlement at the southern end of the bypass is being monitored on a fortnightly basis.

“People get the false perception that something has gone wrong because not a lot is happening at that end,” Mr Muhic said.

“That’s why we’ve installed a couple of signs explaining that the soil is settling – to let people know that we have not run out of money or forgotten about it.”

Originally published as Ballina bypass full steam ahead