Hi-tech roads of the future to slash travel times

Technology to tackle traffic congestion by filtering drivers to the best available routes will be used on the new hi-tech North East Link, while travel times will be faster on Victoria’s mega-roads of the future as alerts are beamed to drivers.

Victoria’s mega-roads of the future will “talk to drivers”, beaming audio and visual alerts about problems that lie ahead.

The technology, which aims to bust traffic congestion and delays by filtering drivers to the best available routes, will be used on the new North East Link due to open next decade.

The Herald Sun can also reveal the $15.8 billion roadway’s tunnels will be fitted with groundbreaking systems that enable GPS navigations to work underground.

North East Link chief executive Duncan Elliott said the project would “create a road for future generations and complete the missing link in Melbourne’s road network”.

 

 

 

 

 

“The North East Link will be one of the most hi-tech roads in Victoria where not only travel times will be slashed for up to 135,000 motorists, but it also leads the way in design and technology enhancements to create a better driver experience,” he said.

The suite of hi-tech solutions also includes a new underground maintenance hub being built beneath the West Gate Tunnel, which will allow most maintenance jobs to be done while the road remains open to traffic.

The maintenance area will be about three metres high and work crews will use a purpose-built electric vehicle to access it while traffic keeps moving above them.

Sensors will also be built into the $6.7 billion road to detect changes to traffic flows.

 

West Gate Tunnel Project chief executive Peter Sammut said cutting-edge technology “will respond to drivers and road conditions helping to make journeys safer and travel times more reliable”.

“For roads of the future, the technology is just as important as the asphalt,” he said. “The technology allows the road to respond to conditions and incidents by reducing speeds automatically, managing the number of cars entering the freeway, providing real-time travel time information, and signs to alert drivers to traffic changes.”

 

The West Gate Tunnel will open in 2022, by which time Melbourne’s population is set to have grown by at least 300,000 people.

Five years later the North East Link will open, ready for “infrastructure to vehicle communications”.

This includes capability for electronic dashboard and voice and tone alerts to warn drivers of potential problems.

Transport Infrastructure Minister Jacinta Allan said the two projects being delivered would be “two of Australia’s most hi-tech roads, allowing motorists to avoid traffic while using the latest navigation systems and tunnels”.

“Cutting-edge technology built into the West Gate Tunnel and North East Link will change the way motorists get around our city, reducing congestion and slashing travel times,” she said.

 

Mr Sammut said the maintenance area under the 4km tunnels in the city’s west would be a Victorian-first.

“The West Gate Tunnel will be maintained using a maintenance area under the tunnel where crews can access mechanical, electrical and other equipment so routine maintenance work can be carried out without having to close the tunnels,” he said.

The government says journey times will be slashed by up to 20 minutes with the new route, a vital alternative to the West Gate Bridge.

 

 

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