More than 1200 vehicles will have to find another way in and out of the Illawarra every day when Bulli Pass closes later this year.
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The closure will also likely lead to peak hour traffic along Lawrence Hargrave Drive doubling – or even tripling.
Late on Wednesday the government announced Bulli Pass would be closed for two months – from October 4 to December 5 – to allow for the installation of fencing to prevent rock falls.
During that time the only routes in and out of the Illawarra will be Mt Ousley Road and Lawrence Hargrave Drive.
According to the Roads and Maritime Services traffic counter on Bulli Pass, an average of 12,873 vehicles travel on it every day.
In the morning and evening peaks more than 2000 vehicles use the pass.
The closure will also likely lead to peak hour traffic along Lawrence Hargrave Drive doubling – or even tripling.
During the closure, these drivers will have to find another way to get to work or wherever they’re going.
One of those routes will be Lawrence Hargrave Drive which RMS figures measured at Clifton states the peak hour figures are around 500 vehicles.
If only a quarter of the Bulli Pass peak hour traffic chooses to use Lawrence Hargrave Drive, that will be double the traffic load on that road.
If half the Bulli Pass peak traffic opt to use the coast road, then the number of vehicles on that road will triple.
A Roads and Maritime Services spokesman said efforts would be made to limit the impact of extra traffic – including synchronising traffic lights and avoiding the scheduling of road works on either of the alternate routes.
The spokesman said the two-month closure was one of a number of options considered, “including partial lane closures, day and night closures and the option of weekend closures”.
He said there were rejected as being unsafe for workers and motorists due to the large scale of machinery involved, the time limitations around frequent openings and closing and the risk of unintended rock falls during fence installation.