Gladesville and Drummoyne locals say gridlock is worsening in their suburbs following changes to improve traffic flow through the notorious Rozelle Interchange, with drivers using streets as “rat runs” to dodge congestion.
However, Transport for NSW officials insist journey times have improved and residents should consider alternative routes or starting journeys earlier or later.
Traffic on Victoria Road at Gladesville has worsened since the changes to the Rozelle Interchange, locals say.Credit: Rhett Wyman
Locals living north of the interchange attended Drummoyne’s Oxford Hotel on Monday night to present complaints to transport officials, arguing the changes to traffic light phasing around Rozelle in early February have transformed their section of Victoria Road into a carpark.
Dale Bailey was among more than 120 people who crammed into the pub to voice his concerns directly to Transport for NSW.
“I’ve been travelling to Royal North Shore Hospital from Five Dock for 21 years [for work], usually a pretty good run … now the traffic is backed up past Hunters Hill,” he said. “That used to happen two or three times a year when there was a major accident or an event. It’s happening every day now.”
Bailey said he believed traffic light timing was the main cause of the congestion at Gladesville. He said it was only done “to make Rozelle not look so bad” to cheers and applause from the crowd.
Gladesville and Drummoyne residents gathered to complain about the impact of the Rozelle Interchange.Credit: Wolter Peeters
However, Transport for NSW representatives said the revised traffic light phasing had improved travel times across the area, and data collected by the agency showed journey times had fallen since the initial delays.
The agency’s daily showed travel from the Gladesville Bridge to the Anzac Bridge at 8.30am took about 30 minutes during the busiest weekdays – Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The same journey on Mondays and Fridays was about 15 minutes.
“It is always a balancing act,” said Grant Knoetze, Transport for NSW’s executive director of customer journey planning. “One of the big challenges we have when it comes to traffic signal operation is you give to one route, you take away from another.”
But locals said the changes to the flow of traffic lights have resulted in drivers making “rat runs”, where a driver turns off a main road and winds through local streets before turning back onto the main road once they are past the worst congestion.
City of Canada Bay councillor Andrew Ferguson, who convened Monday’s meeting, said streets around Victoria Road, including Lyons Road, Renwick Street and Alexandra Street were the worst affected.
People were “rat running at speed through local Drummoyne streets causing havoc, and most alarmingly risk to other motorists and pedestrians”, he said.
“Transport NSW is totally unaware of these consequences and needs to sit now with our local residents and council to fully understand and address the disastrous consequences of this very significant infrastructure project,” Ferguson said.
The opening of the Rozelle Interchange last year caused traffic mayhem above ground in Rozelle, Balmain, Lilyfield and Annandale as motorists struggled to navigate new routes, poor signage and multiple, difficult merges.
Roads Minister John Graham in February agreed “the problem has been transferred further up the road”, and Transport for NSW made changes to traffic light phasing designed to relieve pressure in the worst affected areas.
“It’s a delicate balance and the transport management team are really working closely, looking at exactly how these lights change,” Graham said at the time.
At the public meeting, Knoetze encouraged drivers to try a variety of routes in the morning and afternoon peaks to see what worked best for them.
“It could be leaving five minutes earlier, or five minutes later, if that works for you,” he said. One local interjected: “Or an hour!”
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.