Beaches Tunnel Link EIS Released

EIS (Environment Impact Study) for the Beaches Link Tunnel:  What does it mean for the Residents of Balgowlah?
The EIS was anticipated.  It is just that we did not expect the Government to dump it on us just before Christmas – and after the School P&Cs have closed and will not be functioning until the middle of February.  We know that TfNSW cannot hold proper community consultation sessions due to the Covid 19 Restrictions that we assume will be in place in January and February.

A copy of the EIS can be found at Beaches Link Tunnel and submissions need to  be lodged with TfNSW by the end of February 2021.

We have had a quick review of the EIS Documents (10,000 pages +) and would like to share with  you some initial comments on the documents.

While the Minister for Transport Andrew Constance made the point when announcing the release of the EIS along the lines of “this project will be built, some have thought that it could not be built, only the Liberals can be trusted to build infrastructure projects”, the final cabinet decision to proceed with the project has not been made.  There are several hurdles that need to be overcome:

• The funding for the 3 inter-connected projects (Western Harbour Tunnel, Warringah Freeway Upgrade and the Beaches Link) has not been finalised,
  
  
• The business case has not been submitted to the cabinet – and we know that the stand-along Beaches Link Tunnel Project does not have a good business case and will need a subsidy (hand-out) of around $5 billion,
  
  
• Rob Stokes, the Minister for Planning and the State MP for Pittwater needs to sign off on the recommendations of his department after it has reviewed all the submissions to the EIS.

It is our intention to make a strong submission to the EIS – and to involve as many residents as possible in the process of writing and reviewing the Community Submission.

The project has been sold to residents of the Northern Beaches on the basis that it will allow a shorter commute to the City, the Airport and Western Sydney.  Never, has the Premier, or the Transport Minister or James Griffin told the residents that:  Once the Beaches Link Tunnel is completed, it will be easier for the residents of Western Sydney to drive to Manly, Freshwater, Curl Curl, Dee Why, Mona Vale and Newport than to drive to Bondi, Coogee or Cronulla.  Over weekends in the summer, there will be as many as 40,000 additional cars arriving in the Northern Beaches – and it is this weekend traffic that will boost the toll revenue for the owners of the Beaches Link Tunnel, the Western Harbour Tunnel, WestConnex and the toll roads leading into WestConnex.

In addition, here are some of the local issues we intend to include in the Community Submission from the Balgowlah Residents Group:

• The traffic data used in the EIS is from 2016.  This is before the B-Line Bus became as popular as it currently is and before the announcement of the Dee Why to Chatswood Express Service due to start in early 2021,
  
  
• In the entire EIS, there is only one reference to Covid-19 where TfNSW claims that there will be no no long term impact of the move to Work-from-Home on future traffic from Northern Beaches residents,
  
  
• The impact local traffic in the vicinity of the entry/exit portals in Balgowlah and North Seaforth.  There is an acknowledgement in the EIS that “there could be an increase in local traffic along Wanganella Street North and South”, but this is an issue for the Council to deal with through “traffic management strategies”.  As vehicles will not be allowed to access the Access Road through the golf course site from Maretimo Street because of school drop-off in the mornings, there will be a major traffic pinch points at the intersections of :
  
  
• White St and Wanganella St South:  This is because vehicles from  Balgowlah, Fairlight and Manly will be approaching Wanganella St along White St (close to St Cecilia’s Church) and will compete with vehicles from Balgowlah Heights, Clontarf and Seaforth who will be approaching Sydney Rd along Wanganella St South.
  
  
• Wanganella St (North and South) and Sydney Rd:  Vehicles from North Balgowlah and Balgowlah will come along Wanganella St North and want to turn right into Sydney Rd in order to turn right into the Access Road at the junction with Maretemo St.  The vehicles coming up Wanganella St North will compete with vehicles approaching from Sydney Rd and vehicles coming down Wanganella St South. 
  
  
• The intersection of the Access Road and Sydney Road (opposite Maretemo St):  Here, vehicles approaching along Sydney Rd from the Wanganella St intersection will compete with vehicles from Seaforth and North Balgowlah approaching from the Seaforth Roundabout.
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• The EIS contains no modelling of the traffic flows in Wanganella St and Sydney Rd.

Prepared By : Terry le Roux and Nerissa Levy
​Balgowlah Residents Group