HANSARD
SITTING CALENDAR
SEARCH
LIVE BROADCAST
Hansard Dynamic Subject Index
House of Assembly - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2016-09-21 Daily Xml
Contents
Pdf Xml

Oaklands Park Rail Crossing

Ms DIGANCE (Elder) (15:02): My question is to the Minister for Transport and Infrastructure. Minister, can you inform the house how the government is consulting with southern suburbs residents about the potential upgrade of Oaklands crossing?

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN (Lee—Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Minister for Housing and Urban Development) (15:02): Can I thank the member for Elder for her question and also her tireless advocacy on this important matter. It would be fair to say that she has been first, foremost, loudest and most prominent amongst southern suburbs MPs in advocating for this issue.

The state government has been working to remove dangerous and congested level crossings across our state. We have removed level crossings at the Glenelg tram overpass on South Road and the Port River Expressway, and we are currently removing a major level crossing on South Road in Croydon as part of the Torrens to Torrens project and another as part of the Torrens Rail Junction project on Park Terrace at Bowden. Upgrading the Oaklands crossing to separate rail and road traffic is a priority of this government, as is evidenced by the project's inclusion as part of the 2013 Integrated Transport and Land Use Plan (which was about the same time that the member for Elder was advocating for it).

Currently, the existing Oaklands rail crossing imposes significant traffic delays on Morphett and Diagonal roads, with traffic modelling showing that grade separating road and rail (either via an overpass or underpass) is essential to cater for future traffic volumes beyond 2031. To accommodate current rail service levels, boom gates are active for a significant period of time during peak periods, in particular. Further, the popularity of the state aquatic centre, as well as ongoing development within the Marion domain precinct, is adding further pressure to this intersection.

As the house would be aware, the federal government did commit $40 million towards the upgrading of the Oaklands crossing; however, as all members would be aware, this falls well short, with the project estimated to cost approximately $190 million, depending on the engineering solution chosen.

Mr Wingard: How do you know how much it is then?

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: If the member for Mitchell had looked at an article back on the Adelaidenow website from 2012, he would have seen the plans released.

The SPEAKER: The minister will not respond to interjections, and the member for Mitchell is on two warnings.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: From tomorrow until Saturday, representatives from the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure will be on site at Westfield Marion shopping centre to seek feedback on potential options to separate the rail level crossing from the road. This is an important opportunity for the people of the southern suburbs to have a say on what solution they believe will work best for them and, of course, community engagement is an important part of every infrastructure project we undertake.

As one of the busiest intersections in the southern suburbs, this project has the potential to improve travel times, as well as safety, for tens of thousands of people, whether they are heading to or from work, school, Westfield Marion, the aquatic centre, or for other purposes. I would urge the Leader of the Opposition to get on board and support this project. His silence in the media on this has been deafening, and I would encourage him and the rest of the state opposition to do what the member for Elder has been doing and advocate on behalf of the people of the southern suburbs for the benefit of this project.

PARLIAMENTARY BUSINESS
MEMBERS
GET INVOLVED
ABOUT PARLIAMENT
VISIT
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY
CONTACT