A public exhibition of Boral's plans for a 50 per cent increase in truck movements at its Dunmore quarry has attracted minimal concern from residents.
Boral has sought to modify its existing development consent to expand the hard rock quarry by two hectares and boost the amount of product it hauls by road from 1 million tonnes a year to 1.5 million tonnes a year.
The increased 500,000 tonnes would push daily truck loads from 110 to 165.
A five-week exhibition of the proposal by NSW Planning received nine submissions in total - only four of which were from resident groups or individuals.
Community advocate groups Wollongong Transport Coalition and Neighbourhood Forum 5 were concerned about more heavy vehicles travelling on Mount Ousley.
MORE: Quarry expansion would see 55 more truckloads a day
The groups disputed Boral's traffic assessment that found the extra 55 truckloads a day would have "minimal or negligible impact on the existing road network".
"Simply to say that the proposal would result in an extra 0.2 per cent of road vehicle movements on Mt Ousley totally overlooks the fact that loaded bulk trucks are big and heavy, with road safety risks, noise, air pollution and greatly accelerate road wear and tear," coalition member Irene Tognetti wrote in the group's submission.
Forum representative David Winterbottom suggested a "per-tonne surcharge" should be added to all trucked material to encourage Boral to move more of its product by rail.
"[The] proceeds [should] be applied to road improvements and the upgrading of noise walls along the F6 and Mt Ousley Road," he said.
An unnamed Robertson resident told the department motorists were constantly being intimidated by large trucks when travelling along the Illawarra Highway.
"This could not be more evident than on the top hairpin bend, where these trucks have to cross over to the other side of the road and jack knife their truck to get around the bend," the resident wrote.
"If this proposal is allowed to go ahead it will greatly increase the truck movements on this road and also increase the danger to other motorists."
The remaining five submissions were received from government authorities including NSW Trade and Investment's minerals resource branch (MRB) and Wollongong and Shellharbour councils.
The MRB called for a thorough geological assessment of the site to determine the "nature, quality and extent" of the resource.
Shellharbour Council said Boral's use of 2006 vehicle data didn't present true traffic volume.
Wollongong Council argued the proposal was not in the best interest of the public.
Boral will review the submissions and is expected to prepare a response to them soon.