Image: North Sydney. Image: Pixabay
Motorists and commuters should prepare for possible disruptions to traffic and significant delays to their commute over the weekend and well into next week.
Ongoing maintenance, project works, and the city hosting City2Surf, billed as the world’s largest fun run will see delays to traffic and train services, warned Transport for NSW. The areas affected include the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Sydney Harbour Tunnel, and Warringah Freeway, along with changes to public transport services.
Sydney Harbour Bridge
From Friday, August 9, to Thursday, August 15, motorists can expect lane closures on the Sydney Harbour Bridge for essential maintenance.
Up to five lanes will be closed during nighttime hours, with the most extensive closures occurring over the weekend. Drivers are advised to consider alternative routes, including the Sydney Harbour Tunnel, which will also face its own set of closures.
- Friday 9 August: 11 pm – 6.30 am (up to five lanes)
- Saturday 10 August: 11 pm – 6 am (five lanes)
- Sunday 11 August: 10 pm – 4.30 am (five lanes)
- Monday 12 August: 10 pm – 4.30 am (five lanes)
- Tuesday 13 August: 10 pm – 4.30 am (one lane)
- Wednesday 14 August: 10 pm – 4.30 am (one lane)
- Thursday 15 August: 10 pm – 4.30 am (one lane
Tunnel Closures
One northbound lane will be closed, Friday, August 9, from 11.30 pm to 6.30 am and on Saturday, August 10 from 11 pm – 6 am.
On Tuesday, August 13, through Thursday, August 15, all lanes in both directions of the tunnel will be shut down from 10:30 pm to 5:00 am, necessitating detours via the bridge.
Warringah Freeway Upgrade
The Warringah Freeway will undergo temporary changes starting this week, impacting traffic flow from the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Lane adjustments will affect southbound traffic during peak morning hours and northbound traffic at other times. The modifications are part of a broader upgrade project and are expected to last approximately 18 months. Motorists should anticipate increased travel times as they adjust to the new configurations.
From 11:30 pm Friday, August 9, the Sydney Harbour Bridge lane to Mosman / Manly (Lane 3) will be shifted into the inner carriageway of the freeway. To enable this, the Sydney Harbour Bridge lanes to Chatswood and Epping (Lanes 3 and 4), located on the inner carriageway, will be reduced from two lanes to one, occurring near High Street.
During the morning peak when these lanes support southbound traffic, the existing merge point for citybound traffic will occur some 450m earlier, near Mount Street.
Public Transport Affected
Public transport services will also be affected. On Saturday, August 10, buses will replace T4 Eastern Suburbs and Illawarra trains between Central and Bondi Junction, while regular train services will resume on Sunday to accommodate the City2Surf event.
Additionally, from Monday, August 12, to Wednesday, August 14, nightly maintenance will halt L2 Randwick Line and L3 Kingsford Line light rail services, with replacement buses running every 10-15 minutes.
City2Surf Event
The annual City2Surf fun run on Sunday, August 11, will further complicate travel in Sydney. With over 90,000 participants expected, major roads along the 14 km course from the Sydney CBD to Bondi Beach will close, starting as early as 3:30 am. Transport for NSW has urged participants to use public transport, as special event clearways will be in effect, and vehicles parked in these zones will be towed. Roads will gradually reopen from 11:30 am in the city and 1:00 pm in the eastern suburbs.
Motorists and public transport users are encouraged to plan ahead, allowing extra travel time and checking for real-time updates via the Live Traffic NSW App or transportnsw.info.
Transport for NSW’s Coordinator General, Howard Collins advised motorists to “avoid unnecessary travel through the eastern suburbs – and particularly Bondi Road, where hundreds of buses will carry the bulk of participants between Bondi Beach and Bondi Junction throughout the day”.
“Motorists can expect significant delays and should allow plenty of extra travel time in the eastern suburbs – traffic will be heavy and closures and detours will be in place,” Collins said.
For real-time updates on traffic conditions, road closures, and special event clearways, visit livetraffic.com.
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