Highway Engineering Australia V48.1 June 2016

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Editor’s Column

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Special Features

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Cover Feature: Astec Australia

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Special Report: 2016/7 Federal Budget

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Industry News

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Publisher and Managing Editor Anthony T Schmidt Phone: 1300 EPCGROUP (1300 372 476) Mobile: 0414 788 900 Email: ats@epcgroup.com Deputy Editor Rex Pannell Mobile: 0433 300 106 Email: rex@epcgroup.com National Advertising Sales Manager Yuri Mamistvalov Phone: 1300 EPCGROUP (1300 372 476) Mobile: 0419 339 865 Email: yuri@epcgroup.com Advertising Sales - SA Jodie Chester - G Advertising Mobile: 0439 749 993 Email: jodie@gadvertising.com.au Advertising Sales - WA Licia Salomone - OKeeffe Media Mobile: 0412 080 600 Email: licia@okm.com.au Graphic Design Annette Epifanidis Mobile: 0416 087 412

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CIRCULATION 8,410 Registered by Australia Post Publication No. 100001888

ISSN 0046-7391

June 2016 Volume 48 Number 1

6

26 Major Projects 32 Product Focus

27

33 Road Safety 39 ITS Special Feature 52 Asphalt In Focus

48

59 Stormwater Report 65 AustStab News 69 Professional Development

70

70 Bridges In Focus

About the Cover When it comes road profiling, equipment quality and performance in the field is critical. Together with tight project deadlines, the fact that road profiling is generally one of the first processes undertaken for many road maintenance activities means that any delay in profiling can have a significant effect on 'downstream' processes.

This, in turn, can result in project delays and additional costs.

With that in mind, when it came to selecting new equipment for their road profiling operations, K & L Profiling turned to Astec Australia and Roadtec.

Turn to Page 10 for the full story.

EDITOR’S COLUMN

Leadership, direction and action...

The three key ingredients to a positive future Dear Readers, As we approach the end of what has seemingly become a 'never-ending' election campaign, it would be fair to say that I may have become a little disillusioned with some aspects of the modern political process. Not surprisingly, I feel certain that I am not alone.

Now, before any of you reach for the keyboard in readiness to fire off a vitriolic email to complain about any perceived underlying political bias - positive or negative - let me assure you, the following is intended as a completely neutral, non-partisan editorial. I am not affiliated with, or a member of, any political party or interest group, and I espouse the following opinions purely on the basis that I am, perhaps not surprisingly, somewhat opinionated and, of course, in the hope that they may be (to some at least) appropriate and interesting.

With that in mind...

To say that the past decade has been at times 'politically challenging' both at a Federal, State and Local Government level would not only be stating the obvious, it would also be an exercise in politically-correct understatement.

From unscheduled changes of leader (including numerous changes in leadership teams) and the accompanying accusations and machinations, through to changes and cancellations of major projects as a result of change of government and, most recently, major (often unwanted) changes to Local Governments in New South Wales, it would be fair to say that politics in Australia is at best 'robust' and at worst 'completely chaotic'.

While that in itself can make for interesting news items and provide those with a proclivity to call into talk back radio or take to social media for a good old rant with something to really get stuck into, I believe that this constant political upheaval is a major detriment to our country - at both a federal, state and local level.

2 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

Particularly in terms of the 'uncertainty' that it creates across the economy and within our key industry sectors.

As anyone involved in business will surely know - regardless of the size, type or complexity of the business - nothing is more damaging to business than uncertainty. Put simply, trends will come and go, demand for products and services may rise and fall, but nothing will finish your business off quicker than uncertainty.

Whether that uncertainty stems from social turmoil, political unrest, nervous financial markets or, as is often the case, lack of certainty and/or direction in legislation, evidence has shown time and again, that in an uncertain climate, the majority of people will rather 'sit, wait and do nothing' rather than take a risk or make a decision that may fail.

The irony of this inaction is, of course, that most decisions people make carry a certain amount of risk. The point is, that in times of uncertainty, most people's willingness to take any risk whatsoever diminishes considerably.

This is especially true when it comes to investment.

Local, global, large- or small-scale, personal or business - the same rule applies - investment and spending requires confidence and certainty. Unfortunately, the tragic side-effects of political uncertainty are being highlighted through our industries.

Whether it's roads and transport infrastructure or construction in general, major projects require planning and development lead times and, perhaps most importantly, a high level of confidence on behalf of all stakeholders that the projects will be seen through to completion.

After all, while politics may exist on a 3 or 4 year cycle, for business - large or small - major investment in equipment, facilities and personnel do not. And it's not only

about the required lead times for planning, equipment purchases, staffing and general growth, it's also about long-term viability. Put simply, if businesses cannot be sure that their investments will be used for the intended project timeframe - and hopefully have an ongoing operational component - they will either: a) put it in the 'too hard basket' and not bother; or b) massively inflate the price so as to provide a contingency in case the project gets cancelled or buried in an unforseen layer of bureaucracy as a result of a change of government I will once again point out at this stage that these comments ARE NOT aimed at any particular political party or person... They intended as a 'call to action' for those involved in all levels of the political process to consider the wider implications of inaction and then, hopefully, work together in constructive manner to overcome whatever 'hurdles' may be currently preventing us from achieving many outcomes.

It may sound 'utopian', but we really do need to think about 'the greater good'.

Sure, it may seem like an old-fashioned, outmoded way of thinking (I'll admit, after reading it back even I'm shaking my head a little and wondering if we can ever achieve this type of consensus) but there are more important things at stake than individual careers or, dare I say, the next couple of fiscal years.

Anthony T Schmidt Managing Editor

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SPECIAL FEATURE

Rethinking our approach to smart cities and transport

“O

ne of the most important things that the Federal Government can do is stop being an ATM.” The words of Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, when launching the Commonwealth’s Smart Cities Plan at a Cities Summit in Melbourne on 29 April.

Better transport connections are part of the plan, which also aims to deliver jobs closer to homes, more affordable housing and healthy environments.

The Smart Cities Plan includes the establishment of an infrastructure financing unit to work closely with the private sector on innovative financing solutions and committing $50 million to accelerate planning and development works on major infrastructure projects to develop business cases and investment options.

Mr Turnbull said governments, businesses and the community must work together to transition the economy to be led by innovation.

He said the performance of cities metropolitan and regional - was crucial to the transition because great cities attracted, retained and developed increasingly mobile talent and organisations, encouraging them to innovate, create jobs and support growth.

Historically, the Prime Minister said, the Australian Government had adopted what essentially amounted to an ATM approach to infrastructure requests from the states without the ability to demand and participate, and ensure the best urban outcomes from investment.

“The critical thing that we need to do is ensure that our investments make a difference,” he told summit delegates.

“We need to ensure that every dollar we spend is coordinated with the other levels of government to ensure we get the outcomes of better, more open space, better amenities, greater liveability, more opportunities to work close to where we live and more affordable housing.”

Mr Turnbull said state transport departments had tended to look at linear transport infrastructure, especially the rail lines, as essentially being a challenge of how to get people from point-A to point-B without recognising that the infrastructure, including roads, changed a community.

4 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

“It can change a community for good or ill.

It can unite a community or it can divide it. It can create enormous value, enormous value in real estate, enormous value in added amenity.

“Transport infrastructure has to be looked at in a complete urban context.”

The Prime Minister said that was why the government had allocated $50 million to project development to support the work of a financing team – a specialist financing team that would build the business cases and project delivery models, applying innovative finance approaches and value capture.

Mr Turnbull said Infrastructure Australia had clearly stated that throwing more money at the problem wouldn’t solve it.

“Change can only be delivered by addressing the policy and regulatory settings through which cities and infrastructure are governed, planned, funded, constructed and operated.”

“And much of those reforms must be undertaken by the states and territories and local government. We're not suggesting the Federal Government should be running cities.

So this is why the city deals are so important.

“They would be a contract between all the stakeholders, government, business, industry

and the community, an agreement, if you like, that identifies a clear and measurable goal for a city or a region, and agrees on a coordinated investment plan.

“They'd ensure that our financial contributions, for example, are a more strategic and incentivised reform.”

Minister for Major Projects, Paul Fletcher, said strong partnerships with state and territory governments would underpin successful infrastructure proposals.

"We need the best projects to deliver maximum value for taxpayers and ensure that Commonwealth investment achieves the right outcomes for our cities."

Assistant Minister for Cities, Angus Taylor, said the Smart Cities Plan prioritised smart policy, smart investment and smart technology.

"The global lesson is that cities collaborate to compete. There’s a great incentive here for everyone to work together.

“The plan will also importantly target jobs growth for regional cities and outer metropolitan centres. Our regional cities need a strong platform for coordinated investment and planning."

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SPECIAL FEATURE

Decades of benefits from Melbourne Metro disruption

C

onstruction of the Melbourne Metro Tunnel will cause significant disruption over many years, but will deliver decades of benefits.

The words of Victoria’s Premier, Daniel Andrews, when he released the Environment Effects Statement (EES) for the multi-billiondollar project on 25 May with the Minister for Public Transport, Jacinta Allan.

“The Metro Tunnel is the biggest transport project in Australia. There will be years of disruption getting it done, but the benefits for Melbourne will last for decades. Just like London, New York, and Tokyo – the Metro Tunnel will give us the turn-up-and-go services a world class city needs,” said Mr Andrews.

He and Minister Allan launched the EES at the site of the new Domain Station – they also released new station images and information that would go on public display as part of the EES. Ms Allan said: “Building the Metro Tunnel will have a huge impact on Melbourne for many years – but it will be worth it for the extra services it brings, and the better city it creates.”

The Environment Effects Statement outlines the significant impacts on open space, roads and other transport, including temporary and permanent closures of some streets and occupation of public areas along the tunnel alignment. Some of these impacts will last three-to-five years during the construction phase.

The EES also reveals concept designs, exact locations and depths for the five new underground stations that will be built as part of the Metro Tunnel Project, and how they will be built.

The new Domain Station will be built 15 metres below St Kilda Road using an advanced cut and cover approach.

6 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

The station will include three entrances; one in the Shrine of Remembrance Reserve, one at the relocated Domain tram interchange, and another in the open space where the South African Soldiers Memorial is currently located.

The new Arden and Parkville Stations will be built using a similar cut-and-cover method.

The proposed entrance to Arden Station will be on Laurens Street with provision for a second entrance south of Arden Street.

Parkville Station will have two connections at Melbourne University and a third serving the hospital precinct at the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre.

The CBD stations next to Flinders Street and Melbourne Central will be built through a mined cavern approach, which will reduce impact on Swanston Street and the city.

CBD South Station will include entrances in City Square, Federation Square and Flinders Lane, and a direct underground connection to Flinders Street Station.

CBD North will connect directly to Melbourne Central, and have two proposed entrances on the corners of Franklin and La Trobe Streets.

The EES also proposes new tram connections on Toorak Road West, Park Street in South Melbourne and Flinders Street, which will allow trams to spread out across the city, to where they will be needed most in the future.

The EES can be viewed in full on the Metro Tunnel website, and is on public display at a number of locations, including the State Library and Melbourne Town Hall.

For more information, visit melbournemetro. vic.gov.au.

Release of the EES followed the publication in April and May of two key Expressions of Interest for Melbourne Metro.

On 28 April, the government announced the EOI for the Public Private Partnership (PPP) – expected to be in the range of $6 billion.

The second EOI was announced on 12 May and related to signalling for the project.

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With the theme of Agility, Innovation, IMPACT, ARSC2016 will bring with it a special focus on how all stakeholders can become more agile in harnessing the latest innovations to reduce crashes and save lives. The comprehensive 3-day program will feature national and international keynote speakers, oral and poster presentations, workshops and symposia.

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SPECIAL FEATURE

$1 billion investment to reduce road trauma in Victoria

E

very two hours, someone is killed or hospitalised because of a road crash in Victoria. In 2015, 252 people died from road trauma.

In an effort to reduce the number of deaths and injuries, and their social cost, the Victorian Government has launched a $1 billion investment – Towards Zero 2016-2020.

The initiative, announced on 15 May by Premier, Daniel Andrews, and the Minister for Roads and Road Safety, Luke Donnellan, has the goal of reducing road deaths to below 200 by 2020.

It also seeks to reduce serious injuries by 15 per cent, which impacted 4,951 people in 2014/15.

Premier Andrews said the $1 billon investment aimed to save lives across the state as part of Victoria’s Road Safety Strategy and Action Plan.

“There will never be an acceptable number of deaths on our roads, but an ambitious target and an aggressive strategy will help save lives.

“Road trauma has taken too many lives, and left too many families heartbroken. We need a radical change in our approach.”

Mr Donnellan said: “We’ve come a long way in reducing road trauma, but we won’t continue to see a reduction in deaths and serious injuries without a fundamental change to our approach.

“The increasing number of fatalities on our roads is alarming. Reducing the toll to below 200 within five years is the most ambitious road safety target in Victoria’s history.”

Victorians are four times more likely to be killed on country roads where the speeds are higher.

A $340 million investment will address known crash black spots on more than 2,500 kilometres of rural and regional roads across the state.

Twenty high risk rural roads with significant crash histories have already been prioritised under the package, including: • the Hume Freeway/Highway between Thomastown and Wodonga; • Calder Freeway between Keilor Park and Bendigo; and • Geelong-Bacchus Marsh Road between Geelong and Bacchus Marsh.

On these three roads alone, 42 people have lost their lives and 358 people have been seriously injured in the past five years.

8 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

Premier Daniel Andrews launching the Towards Zero Campaign – left to right: Doug Fryer Victoria Police, John Merritt CEO of VicRoads, Premier Andrews, Roads Minister, Luke Donnellan and Joe Calafiore Traffic Accident Commission CEO .

“There will never be an acceptable number of deaths on our roads, but an ambitious target and an aggressive strategy will help save lives."

The installation of 330 kilometres of flexible barriers on high risk, high volume 100 kilometre-an-hour roads is expected to reduce run-off road and head-on crashes by up to 85 per cent on these sections.

On popular motorcycle routes, additional protection will be added to make the barriers safer for motorcyclists.

Funding of $60 million will go towards road safety improvements in metropolitan Melbourne to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries that happen in local streets and at main intersections.

In recent years, around 20 per cent of drivers killed in road crashes had a bloodalcohol content equal to or greater than point-05. As part of the strategy, all drink drivers caught over the limit will be required to drive vehicles fitted with alcohol interlocks (seed our Road Safety section for more details).

The strategy also builds on the government’s work to reduce drink and drug driving with 10 new booze buses and roadside drug testing expanded to 100,000 tests a year. It is expected to increase the number of

motorists required to use alcohol interlocks from 10,700 to 13,300 per year.

The government will take the lead in promoting vehicle technology in a push to get safer vehicles on Victorian roads.

From 2018, all government vehicles must have a five-star ANCAP rating and may, in addition, include safety measures such as auto-emergency braking, advisory speed alerting technology, lane departure warning or lane keep assist.

This will help to ensure that the safety measures become standard features, available on the wider market as these vehicles circulate out of the government fleet.

The $146 million Young Driver Safety Package is made up of a suite of initiatives, including the road safety education complex, practical safe driving program, L2P Learner Driver Mentor Program, free licence scheme, community grants, a communication fund and student forums.

Along with the loss of life, physical trauma and the emotional and health impacts, road trauma in Victoria is estimated to cost more than $3 billion per year.

COVER STORY

K& L PROFILING, ASTEC AUSTRALIA AND ROADTEC – A ROBUST, RELIABLE PARTNERSHIP When it comes to road profiling, equipment quality and performance in the field is critical. Together with tight project deadlines - often a result of trying to minimise disruptions to the road network or scheduling projects to avoid inclement weather - the fact that road profiling is generally one of the first processes undertaken for many road maintenance activities, means that any delay in profiling can have a significant effect on 'downstream' processes. This, in turn, can result in project delays and additional costs.

With that in mind, when it came to selecting new equipment for their road profiling operations, K & L Profiling turned to Astec Australia and Roadtec.

10 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

COVER STORY Pictured here and opposite: The Roadtec RX-600 in action

“After meeting the people behind the Roadtec brand and experiencing the culture and pride that goes into the building of their products, I came away with every confidence that a Roadtec profiler would be the best option for the future of K & L Profiling.”

K

& L Profiling is one of the leading providers of road profiling services in South Australia and the Northern Territory, and a key part of its machinery fleet is the Roadtec RX-700 and Roadtec RX-600ex.

“Both the RX-700 and the slightly smaller RX-600ex are robust, reliable machines that suit our range of operations,” said Kym Burgess, a Principal Director and General Manager of K & L Profiling.

“We purchased our first Roadtec from Astec in 2011 – our RX-700 was the first one in Australia.

“We bought it after Lawrence – Principal Director and Operations Manager, Lawrence Parry – travelled to the United States to inspect the Roadtec complex and talk first hand with staff and customers.”

The visit prompted Mr Parry to comment: “After meeting the people behind the Roadtec brand and experiencing the culture and pride that goes into the building of their products, I came away with every confidence that a Roadtec profiler would be the best option for the future of K & L Profiling.”

The company purchased its RX-600ex in 2015 and Mr Burgess said given the right conditions, K & L would look at buying another Roadtec profiler from Astec.

Astec Australia has been servicing the region since 1995, is based in Brisbane and

is a wholly owned company store of Astec Industries.

Globally headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Astec Industries was founded in 1972, and is a US publicly listed corporation of 18 subsidiary businesses.

The Roadtec RX-700 profiler features a 755 hp (563 kW) Caterpillar engine. It is available with four-track or three-track assemblies and is built with a focus on balanced weight distribution.

The RX-700 is a heavy duty machine that cuts up to 14” (35.6 cm) deep. Standard widths are 6'7" (201cm), 7'2" (218 cm), 8'2" (249cm), and 10” (305cm).

Like all Roadtec planers, this model features 60 degree front load-out conveyor swing. The optional VCSTM Variable Cutter System for cutting widths of 24”, 36” and 48” (60cm, 91cm, and 121cm) is also offered for this model.

The RX-600ex is a 620 hp (462 kW) Cummins-powered cold planer available with four-track assemblies or optional three-track assemblies.

It is a lighter weight, versatile machine that allows contractors to cut up to 12” (30 cm) deep with width of 6'3" (1.9 m), 6'7" (2 m), or 7'2" (2.184 m).

The RX-600ex is light and manoeuvrable for urban situations. A two-stage front loadout conveyor, with 60 degree swing to either side, provides ample loading capacity.

Mr Burgess said after investigating its options, K & L Profiling had opted for Roadtec profilers because they had plenty of performance or “grunt” as he preferred to describe it.

“The RX-700 is ideally suited to bulk excavation of pavements. It’s primarily used in jobs where asphalt companies reinstate pavement and also for contractors who are doing bulk earthwork excavations.

“The RX-600ex focuses on local government projects. It’s a lot quieter than the 700 and it also runs at very low revs – only about 1,900 revs per minute at full speed) and its’ very fuel efficient.

“It’s easier to manoeuvre in streets where you encounter trees, signs and other obstacles, but significantly, it still has the power to undertake deep-lift excavation.”

Mr Burgess said other profiling services provided by K & L Profiling included: • edge-and-end planning operations: • surface texturing to improve skid resistance and improve bonding with new asphalt overlays; • pavement patching for maintenance operations; and • shape correction to achieve a new pavement profile.

According to Mr Burgess, another major reason why his company opted for the Roadtec range was the ease of maintenance and easy accessibility of spare parts.

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 11

COVER STORY

“The benefit of Roadtec machines is that they are a lot more user-friendly for our operations than other comparative machines and they are easy to maintain.

“Our mechanics can work on them quite easily. If there’s a breakdown on a project, our people can get them up and running with very little down time and then undertake more expansive repairs later, if needed.

“Roadtec doesn’t have any problems with us buying parts off the shelf. A lot of companies don’t hold stock and operators have to wait for parts to be imported from overseas; the down time is horrendous.

“Limiting down time is critical to winning contracts because clients like state road authorities, local government, construction and asphalt companies have to be sure they can complete projects on time and on budget.”

Mr Burgess said keeping machines running was also important because of the capital investment involved.

“Machines can vary anywhere from $800,000 to $1.3 million for a profiler.

And the profiler is equipped with tungsten carbide teeth in its cutting drum. There are about 300 teeth in a drum and each tooth is valued at about eight dollars.

“If you get into hard asphalt, you can use a lot of teeth in a shift. You might use 100 teeth, so it doesn’t take too much to work out the cost of the teeth alone.

“The machines are also hard working. They use about 300 to 500 litres of diesel a shift – it’s the nature of the beast.”

Mr Burgess said he was optimistic about the outlook for the sector in view of the amount of road maintenance work that had to be completed in South Australia.

“We’re well behind in our maintenance regime – an estimated 30 years – that’s how bad it is in SA. “In fact, most states struggle with money to meet road maintenance and it would help considerably if the Federal Government increased the flow of maintenance dollars.

Local government also struggles; councils’ maintenance programs have declined considerably.”

Mr Burgess said K & L Profiling was a member of AAPA (Australian Asphalt and Pavement Association) and was going to join the Civil Contractors Federation to help promote its business and the industry.

“The next couple of years may prove to be a struggle, but I think it’s going to be a viable sector in the long-term.”

“The benefit of Roadtec machines is that they are a lot more user-friendly for our operations than other comparative machines and they are easy to maintain."

The Roadtec RX-700 (pictured here and top) is easily transportable.

12 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

ABOUT ASTEC AUSTRALIA Astec Australia is committed to delivering best of quality asphalt mobile equipment (Roadtec and Carlson), which are fully maintained with quality made Astec genuine parts and backed-up with extensive service and support programs.

We have a dedicated team of customer service staff committed to the Astec Response Promise that delivers: • Australia- wide service; • customer profitability; • 24/7 serviceability (if you're working, we're working) and; • up-to-date spare parts availability and pricing.

For further information, please visit: www.astecaustralia.com.au or contact Jorge Boil – National Sales Manager Asphalt and Asphalt Mobile Equipment, Astec Australia on 1300 278 322

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SPECIAL REPORT

Budget infrastructure funding to back economic growth

A

key plank in the 2016-17 Federal Budget was funding for ongoing investment in critical infrastructure and regional development, according to Australia’s Infrastructure and Transport Minister, Darren Chester.

Mr Chester said the government was building for the future by delivering over $50 billion for the period 2013-14 to 2019-20 onwards in major road and rail infrastructure.

The investment was, the Minister said, part of an integrated plan that would create value and back economic growth for Australians in cities and regions.

“Infrastructure is a key part of the government's plan to improve our economy's productive capacity.

“Our investment in infrastructure supports more liveable and productive communities through well planned, safer and more efficient transport networks.”

Mr Chester said a renewed national focus on Australian cities, metropolitan and regional, was a key element of the government’s Smart Cities Plan to build a more prosperous and innovative nation.

As part of the plan the government was investing more than $3.4 billion in urban rail projects across the country.

Minister Chester said the Budget included more than $33 billion over the forward estimates to deliver the critical infrastructure that Australia needed for a future that would generate tensof-thousands of jobs, ease congestion in cities, increase the capacity of freight routes and improve safety for road users.

In the Budget, the government had also made further commitments to the Ipswich Motorway and Perth Freight Link, as well as more funding for preparatory work for a Western Sydney Airport and to develop a rail access concept design.

Under the Roads to Recovery Program, the government would deliver an additional $50 million per year from 2019-20, increasing the overall annual commitment to $400 million to support construction and maintenance of local roads.

Local and state roads would benefit from the continuation of the Black Spot Program with the government committing $60 million per year from 2019-20 to fund safety upgrades such as roundabouts, crash barriers and street lights at road sites where crashes occurred.

14 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

The Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program involved the government committing $40 million per year from 2019-20 to fund infrastructure projects such as rest stops, parking bays and upgrading the capacity of roads.

Funding of upgrades and repairs to more than 244 bridges by local communities would continue under the Bridges Renewal Program - the government committed $60 million per year from 2019-20 to fund the program.

A $1.5 billion Victorian Infrastructure Package would tackle congestion and improve the liveability of the state, particularly in Melbourne, which continued to be Australia's fastest growing city.

The package provided the following funding on condition the Victorian Government matched it dollar-for-dollar: • $500 million to upgrade the Monash Freeway; • $350 million to complete the upgrade of the M80 Ring Road; • $220 million to upgrade the Murray Basin Freight Rail network; • $345 million towards a Rural and Regional Roads Package; and • $75 million towards an Urban Congestion Package.

Inland Rail Mr Chester said the Australian Government would build the Inland Rail project through the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) and private sector partnerships.

“The government will retain ownership of the ARTC to enable the project to access funds at the lowest cost to the taxpayer, testing the market to optimise private sector involvement in the delivery and financing of Inland Rail.”

The government provided the ARTC with $594 million in additional equity funding to acquire the necessary land for the Inland Rail corridor and to continue pre-construction works and due diligence activities.

Western Sydney Airport project The Budget contained a $115 million allocation to fund preparation work, including $26 million to develop a concept design for rail access, which would accelerate benefits to Western Sydney. Another $89 million was set-aside to undertake critical preparatory activities for the airport site.

“The Western Sydney Airport Environmental Impact Statement and Airport Plan are expected to be finalised in the coming months, following the review of nearly 5,000 public submissions.

“And it is anticipated the proposed Western Sydney Airport will commence operations in the mid-2020s,” Minister Chester said.

The airport would be expected to handle about 10 million passengers around five years after it opens for business. By that time, it would provide nearly 9,000 direct jobs – a figure that would grow to more than 60,000 direct jobs by the early 2060s.

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS BY STATE AND TERRITORY New South Wales • Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan: $2.9 billion with $524.4 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Pacific Highway duplication: $5.6 billion with $1.37 billion to be provided in 2016-17; • WestConnex: $1.5 billion plus a concessional loan of $2 billion to accelerate the New M5 section with $300 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Northern Sydney Freight Corridor: $691.6 million with $25 million to be provided in 2016-17; • NorthConnex: $412.3 million with $96 million to be provided in 2016-17; • M1 Productivity Package: $196 million with $110 million to be provided in 2016-17.

Through the Asset Recycling Initiative, the Australian Government would also provide $2.19 billion to New South Wales towards:

SPECIAL REPORT

Sydney Metro: $1.7 billion; Sydney's Rail Future: $98.4 million; Parramatta Light Rail: $78.3 million; Pinch Points and Clearways: $52.2 million; Smart Motorways: $60 million; Gateway to the South: $39.2 million; Regional Road Freight Corridor – New England Highway: $30.3 million; • Regional Road Freight Corridor – Princes Highway: $52.5 million; • Regional Road Freight Corridor – Mitchell Highway: $5.7 million; and • Regional Road Freight Corridor – Newell Highway: $78.8 million

• Melbourne Metro: $857.2 million; • Murray Basin Rail: $20.2 million.

Minister Chester said the Australian Government remained committed to the East West Link and its offer of $3 billion still stood.

“We are ready to deliver the project should any Victorian Government decide to proceed.

“The funding allocated for the Monash Freeway, M80 Ring Road, Murray Basin Freight Rail, Rural and Regional Roads Package and Urban Congestion Package is provided by a reallocation of the $1.5 billion payment provided for the East West Link.”

Victoria

• Ipswich Motorway: $200 million with $50 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Bruce Highway: up to $6.7 billion with $558.1 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Gateway Upgrade North: up to $914.2 million with $200 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Toowoomba Second Range Crossing: up to $1.137 billion with $493.4 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Warrego Highway – Toowoomba to Miles: $508 million with $41.3 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Cape York Region Package: $208.4 million with $48.8 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Moreton Bay Rail Link: $518.4 million with the final $100 million to be provided in 2016-17; and • Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 2: $95 million with $47.5 million to be provided in 2016-17.

• • • • • • •

• Monash Freeway: $500 million; • M80 Ring Road: $500 million with $56.8 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Murray Basin Freight Rail: $220 million; • Great Ocean Road: $25 million with $4.9 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Western Highway – Ballarat to Stawell Duplication: $501.3 million with $3.43 million to be provided in 2016-17 to duplicate a further 12.4 kilometres from Buangor to Ararat; • Princes Highway East – Traralgon to Sale Duplication: $210 million with $23.9 million to be provided in 2016-17 to duplicate a further 3.5 kilometres west of Sale; • Tullamarine Freeway Widening (Section 1): $200 million with $61.7 million to be provided in 2016-17 to continue work on the 5.5 kilometres from Melrose Drive to the Melbourne Airport; • Princes Highway West – Winchelsea to Colac Duplication – $181.7 million with $40.3 million to be provided in 2016-17 to duplicate a further 14.5 kilometres from Armytage to Warncoort; and • St Albans Rail Grade Separation: $151 million with $60.9 million to be provided in 2016-17 to complete the removal of the level crossing and construction of the new rail station and bus interchange.

Through the Asset Recycling Initiative the Commonwealth is also providing a total of $877.5 million to Victoria towards:

Queensland

Western Australia • Perth Freight Link: $1.2 billion with $207.7 million to be provided in 2016-17; • NorthLink WA – Swan Valley Bypass: $644.1 million with $118.3 million in 2016-17; • NorthLink WA – Tonkin Highway Grade Separations: $225 million with $87.3 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Great Northern Highway (Muchea to Wubin): $307.8 million with $78.2 million to be provided in 2016-17; and • North West Coastal Highway (Minilya to Barradale): $100.7 million with $23.1 million to be provided in 2016-17.

The government, Mr Chester said, would also provide an additional $490 million towards the construction of the $2 billion Forrestfield Airport Link project, implementing its commitment to maintain Western Australia's GST relativity at its 2014-15 levels.

South Australia • North-South Corridor – Darlington interchange: $496 million with $159.7 million to be provided in 2016-17; • North-South Corridor – Torrens Road

to River Torrens: $448 million with $77.1 million in 2016-17; • North-South Corridor – Northern Connector: $788 million with $84 million to be provided in 2016-17; and • Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands: $85 million with $27 million to be provided in 2016-17.

Tasmania • Midland Highway: $400 million with $70 million to be provided in 2016-17. The funding would enable the completion of two projects and allow three further projects to commence construction in 2016-17.

• Freight Rail Revitalisation: $59.8 million with $20.4 million to be provided in 201617; • Brooker Highway (Elwick-Goodwood to Howard Road): $25.6 million with $7 million to be provided in 2016-17. This would allow the project to be completed by mid-2017.

Australian Capital Territory • ACT Travel Time Information: $300,000 with $250,000 to be provided in 2016-17 enabling the project to be completed in late 2016.

Northern Territory • Northern Territory Roads Package: $77 million with $23 million to be provided in 2016-17; and • Regional Roads Productivity Package: $90 million with $20.3 million to be provided in 2016-17.

Through the Asset Recycling Initiative the Australian Government would also provide $40.4 million to the Northern Territory towards: • Ship Lift and Marine Industries Project: $13 million; • T-Gen: $6.5 million; • Flood Mitigation – Darwin: $3.3 million; • Flood Mitigation – Katherine: $2.3 million; • Roper Highway Upgrade: $2.1 million; • Tanami Road Upgrade: $1.3 million; • Litchfield Park Road: $3.7 million; • Larapinta Drive: $3.3 million; • Sadadeen Road: $1 million; • Kambolgie Creek: $0.4 million; and • Tiwi Island Roads: $3.5 million

Northern Australia • Northern Australia Roads Package: $600 million with $100 million to be provided in 2016-17; • Beef Roads Package: $100 million with $35 million to be provided in 2016-17; and • $5 billion concessional loan facility for development of Northern Australia.

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 15

INDUSTRY NEWS

ALGA heads call for government commitment to infrastructure investment Years of under-investment in public infrastructure, particularly in the transport sector, means Australia’s infrastructure network is struggling to meet the needs of businesses and communities, according to the Australian Local Government Association.

Launching a joint statement on infrastructure funding by the ALGA and seven other peak bodies, Association President, Troy Pickard, said traffic jams were set to cost the nation an estimated $53 billion a year by 2031.

Mayor Pickard said the traffic congestion experienced by many of Australia's major cities was a symptom of a larger infrastructure funding issue that was taking its toll on Australia's productivity.

"The government’s plan to accelerate major infrastructure projects is progress in the right direction.

“But with trends showing that infrastructure spending is tracking downwards, more needs to be done to ensure that we have the appropriate infrastructure to support Australia’s economy to remain competitive."

The other signatories to the joint statement released on 19 May are the Institute of Public Works Engineering Australasia, Planning Institute of Australia, Australian Logistics Council, Urban Development Institute of Australia, Property Council of Australia, National Farmer's Federation and Green Building Council of Australia.

They called for a commitment ahead of the 2 July Federal election from all political parties to ensure ongoing investment of no less than five per cent of GDP into productive infrastructure projects that supported continued economic growth and boosted national productivity.

16 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

"We must move away from the fragmented infrastructure funding habits of the past and start taking a longterm, strategic and planned approach to infrastructure investment, and local roads must be considered as part of this approach," Mayor Pickard said.

"That is why, as part of its election plan, ALGA is proposing to unlock the local and regional productivity of local roads through a strategic investment of $200 million a-year for five years.

“This investment would improve access for freight vehicles and enhance connectivity between local roads and preferred state and national freight routes, adding an estimated $1.07 billion to Australia's GDP by just the third year of this investment.

"Maintaining and improving our standard of living in the future will depend on increasing our productivity. A greater level of investment in productive infrastructure in our cities and regions will benefit communities across the country and the nation as a whole."

Ancient plant inspires transport technology A new type of membrane that has the potential to significantly boost the performance of fuel cells and transform the electric vehicle industry replicates the workings of the humble cactus.

The membrane development, by scientists from the CSIRO and Hanyang University in Korea, was featured in the respected journal Nature.

The paper showed that in hot conditions the membrane, which features a water repellent skin, could improve the efficiency of fuel cells by a factor of four.

According to CSIRO researcher and co-author, Aaron Thornton, the skin works in a similar way to a cactus plant, which thrives by retaining water in harsh and arid environments.

“Fuel cells, like the ones used in electric vehicles, generate energy by mixing together simple gases, like hydrogen and oxygen.

However, in order to maintain performance, proton exchange membrane fuel cells – or PEMFCs – need to stay constantly hydrated,” Dr Thornton said.

“At the moment, this is achieved by placing the cells alongside a radiator, water reservoir and a humidifier. The downside is that when used in a vehicle, these occupy a large amount of space and consume significant power.

Dr Thornton’s colleague and co-author, Cara Doherty, said the team’s new cactusinspired solution offered an alternative.

“A cactus plant has tiny cracks, called stomatal pores, which open at night when it is cool and humid, and close during the day when conditions are hot and arid. This helps it retain water,” Dr Doherty said.

“The membrane works in a similar way.

Water is generated by an electrochemical reaction, which is then regulated through nano-cracks within the skin. The cracks widen when exposed to humidifying conditions and close- up when it is drier.

“This means that fuel cells can remain hydrated without the need for bulky external humidifier equipment. We also found the skin made the fuel cells up to four times as efficient in hot and dry conditions.”

Professor Young Moo Lee from Hanyang University, who led the research, said it could have major implications for many industries, including the development of electric vehicles.

“At the moment, one of the main barriers to the uptake of fuel cell electric vehicles is water management and heat management in fuel cell systems.

“This research addresses the hurdle, bringing us a step closer to fuel cell electric vehicles being more widely available.”

Research paper co-author, Dr Cara Doherty.

INDUSTRY NEWS

Making it cheaper for NSW commuters to change transport modes

“Around 70 per cent of customers are not reaching the reward, meaning a majority of customers aren’t receiving any benefit.

“By offering half-price fares, we’ll still provide an incentive to use public transport, but the new reward strikes a balance to allow a more sustainable system.”

vehicle will have a comprehensive visual inspection, expected to take up to 45 minutes.

“For the first time, all heavy vehicle inspections will rely on a consistent inspection manual,” Mr Petroccitto said.

“This health check of the heavy vehicle fleet is an important building block to a nationally consistent inspection system.”

Health check on Australia’s heavy vehicle Electric cars help reduce fleet CSIRO carbon footprint

New conditions covering Opal fares from the first week of September will encourage more New South Wales commuters to leave their cars at home and use multiple modes of public transport.

A new $2 transfer discount will apply to adult Opal customers who change modes of transport within an hour, as part of the same journey. Child/youth, concession and Gold Senior/Pensioner Opal card customers will receive a $1.00 transfer discount.

State Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Andrew Constance, said customers who interchanged during their journey paid more than those who stayed on the same mode to reach their destination.

“This penalty is simply a disincentive to multi-mode travel, even if the transfer is more practical and gets you to your destination faster,” Mr Constance said.

“We’re now making it cheaper to change between trains, buses, ferries and light rail. Ultimately, we want people on public transport and out of their cars.”

Mr Constance said the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal had recommended a number of changes to fares, structure and benefits.

The daily fare cap for seniors and pensioners will be kept at $2.50, while the Adult Opal card daily fare cap will remain at $15 and the weekly fare cap at $60.

That means people who travel long distances and reach the cap won’t be paying more for their commutes.

Mr Constance said the government was adopting the tribunal recommendation to change the Opal weekly travel reward system.

Instead of free travel after eight paid journeys, customers would receive a 50 per cent discount on fares after eight paid journeys during a week.

18 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

Consultation is underway to assess the health of Australia’s 520,000-strong heavy vehicle fleet.

Chief Executive Officer of the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator, Sal Petroccitto, said information had been released to each state and territory to measure the roadworthiness of heavy vehicles later this year.

“For the first time in Australia, we’ll be conducting a national survey of heavy vehicle roadworthiness using trained inspectors to gather consistent safety information,” Mr Petroccitto said.

“Different data is currently compiled by each state and territory which means that the roadworthiness of heavy vehicles nationally is unclear.

“It’s a fundamental roadblock to understanding the safety of the fleet and to achieving national consistency.

“The National Roadworthy Baseline Survey is on track to roll out in August and September, and we’ll be speaking to the industry and government in the coming months to discuss the impacts.”

The survey will sample approximately 9,000 heavy vehicles, including rigid, articulated, B-doubles, road trains, buses and plant equipment.

Inspections will be conducted by authorised officers at roadside check points and in depots throughout Australia. Each

With the introduction of 100 per cent electric cars to its national fleet, CSIRO is taking further steps to reduce its carbon footprint.

The first two of 10 petrol-free, electric cars, and two additional electric bikes have been delivered to staff at CSIRO’s Discovery Centre at Black Mountain, Canberra.

"We are rolling out these new electric cars across seven of our sites to enable petrolfree motoring within CSIRO’s pool of fleet vehicles," CSIRO General Manager, Building and Infrastructure Services, Mark Wallis said.

"With the addition of solar PV panels at our sites, we aim to generate more than enough renewable energy to charge and run the cars, making them emission- free.”

Other CSIRO locations will shortly take delivery of the new electric cars including Melbourne, Brisbane, Hobart, Perth, Townsville and Newcastle.

"The cars and electric bikes are the latest in a number of initiatives to lower emissions, reduce waste and improve the sustainability of operations across CSIRO," Mr Wallis said.

"Our scientists continue to lead the way in many aspects of alternative energy, emissions and waste reduction, and water and energy efficiency technology. We also want to be an organisation that puts those same things into action across our sites and operations.

"The money saved or earned can be reinvested into national science priorities."

Brisbane, Australia, 2-5 August 2016

International Conference on Traffic and Transport Psychology UN Decade of Action for Road Safety: The Half Way Point Over 70 countries are united in the UN Decade of Action to reduce traffic crashes and the global road toll. At its half way point, ICTTP2016 will showcase the latest research, programs, policy and technological innovation in Australia and worldwide. The 4 day program will provide an update on world-wide developments, together with emerging issues of key geographic regions and at risk populations.

• Driving and fatigue • Safety issues in high and low volume cycling countries • T raffic psychology in low and middle income countries - same-same but different?

• T heory in practice: The strengths and challenges in workplace road safety • Early Career Researchers

Session themes:

Keynote speakers:

• Intelligent transport solutions • Driver training, assessment and licensing • Impaired driving

• D r Barry Watson, CEO, Global Road Safety Partnership, Switzerland • P rof David Strayer, Professor of Cognition and Neural Science, Department of Psychology, University of Utah, USA

• Road user attitudes and behaviour • Vulnerable road users

• P rof Kazumi Renge, President-elect, IAAP Division of Traffic and Transportation Psychology, Japan

• Sustainable transport • Road infrastructure and design

• A /Prof Samuel Charlton, Chair of the School of Psychology, University of Waikato, New Zealand

• Driver distraction and attention • Enforcement and behaviour • Road safety in the global perspective • Road safety education and marketing • Public and commercial transport • Translating theory into action

• A /Prof Teresa Senserrick, TARS, University of NSW, Australia • M ike Stapleton, Deputy Director-General (Customer Services, Safety & Regulation), Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads, Australia • A ssistant Commissioner Michael Keating, Road Policing Command, Queensland Police Service, Australia

Symposia highlights: • U nderstanding the Human Factors implications of Automated Vehicles: An overview of current projects in Europe, North America and Australia • I n-Vehicle Data Recording and Feedback Technologies: Usefulness in improving road safety research and outcomes • I ntegrating safe systems and systems thinking in road safety research and practice • Attention and awareness in everyday driving • D riving patterns and behaviours for older drivers: What can we learn from naturalistic driving research?

Held every four years, ICTTP has achieved a long-standing and highly-regarded reputation as the leading international gathering in the field of traffic and transport psychology.

This will be the first time the conference has been held in the Southern Hemisphere.

Join over 300 researchers, policymakers, practitioners and industry from the areas of public health, law, medicine, economics, law enforcement, public policy, education, human factors, and psychology.

• Bicycle safety and technology: Opportunities and threats

Register now! www.icttp2016.com

• Fitness to drive Platinum Partner

Hosts

INDUSTRY NEWS

Funding for Victorian companies to transition from auto sector Victorian automotive businesses affected by the closure of manufacturing will be assisted by the State Government to identify new opportunities and target markets.

The government has made available $112,000 in funding to provide seven automotive supply chain companies across Melbourne with the business support they need to plan for their future.

“This funding will provide tailored case management services to assist automotive supply chain businesses to diversify into new markets,” said Industry and Employment Minister, Wade Noonan.

The companies that stand to receive assistance valued at $16,000 to develop a transition plan are: • Boge Elastmetall Australia Pty Ltd (Dingley); • Composite Materials Engineering (Bayswater); • Dolphin Products Pty Ltd (Heidelberg West); • Entegro Group Pty Ltd (Brooklyn); • Roehlen Industries Pty Ltd (Mordialloc); • Venture Campbellfield Pty Ltd (Campbellfield); and • Venture DMG (Keysborough) The funding comes from the Automotive Supply Chain Transition Program (ASCTP), which was established to support businesses identify future opportunities and new markets, and highlight the capabilities needed to enter the markets.

Businesses can then apply for funding of up to $50,000 to implement the key transition activities identified in their plan.

Funding is also available for business capability development, including assistance with management skills, sales and marketing strategies, financial management, new product development and marketing opportunities.

Automotive supply chain companies wishing to apply for ASTCP assistance or specialist companies seeking to deliver transition projects for the program should visit: www.business.vic.gov.au/asctp or call Business Victoria on 13 22 15.

20 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

Transurban acquires AirportLinkM7 Transurban Queensland, operator of the go via network, commenced operation of AirportLinkM7 at the beginning of April.

The go via network is a 75 kilometre network of tolled roads, bridges and tunnels across the greater Brisbane area.

Transurban Queensland finalised the acquisition of AirportLinkM7 with the receivers of BrisConnections for $1.87 billion, plus stamp duty of $108 million and transaction costs of $23 million.

Group General Manager of Transurban Queensland, Wes Ballantine, said the change in ownership would be seamless for motorists.

“We are delighted to commence operating AirportLink, which completes the go via network and provides us with the opportunity to optimise the network and enhance our service for customers,” Mr Ballantine said.

“There will not be any change to tolls – motorists with a valid tolling account can continue to travel and manage their account as they do now,” he said.

Mr Ballantine said traffic volumes on the AirportLinkM7 continued to grow as motorists recognised the value for money that it provided through travel time reliability and travel time savings.

“Since Legacy Way opened to traffic in mid-2015 we have seen steady traffic growth through the corridor which includes AirportLink. We expect this traffic growth to continue as motorists seek to avoid the congested alternatives.”

Tenders to be called for AdeLINK South Australian businesses will be asked to tender to design the routes of the State Government’s proposed AdeLINK tram network.

The government has already appointed InfraPlan, a locally based transport and planning consultancy, to project manage the $4 million detailed business case for the construction of the network.

It will oversee the tender process to commission businesses to undertake detailed planning and design, as well as an analysis of project costs and the full range of economic,

social and environmental benefits of the tram projects.

The final business case will pull together each of the route designs and set out a plan with options for delivering them.

The AdeLINK tram proposal envisages a network of trams in the CBD, extending to the north, east, south and west.

The contracts will require a range of specialist skills and experience across a number of areas, including: • concept and detailed design phases for the tram network including urban design; • public transport modelling and performance analysis; • engineering operations and fleet selection; • traffic management and public transport planning; and • costings, financial and economic analysis.

There will also be further engagement with the community and local governments during the development of the detailed business case.

Transport and Infrastructure Minister, Stephen Mullighan, said expanding Adelaide’s tram network had the potential to attract investment and boost economic growth.

It would also encourage urban renewal and jobs, and bring residents and visitors to the city centre.

“Importantly, it will support and contribute to the growing market demand for residential development in the CBD, inner and middle metropolitan Adelaide.

“We know light rail is a successful public transport option which encourages people to start using public transport,” Mr Mullighan said.

“The extension of the Glenelg tram line to the Entertainment Centre has proven to be extremely popular since it was opened, with many commuters making the switch from driving themselves and taking the tram.”

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Design consultants bid for Hoddle Street upgrade project Expressions of interest from qualified design consultants to progress the $60 million Streamlining Hoddle Street project closed on 8 June.

The Hoddle Street-Punt Road corridor is the major north-south arterial to the east of central Melbourne.

It provides an eight kilometre link across the inner city from Queens Parade, Clifton Hill, to St Kilda Junction. It is also an important connection between the Eastern and Monash Freeways.

The Streamlining Hoddle Street project will use new intersection configurations to improve travel times for all transport modes and provide a safer travel experience.

The four intersections of Swan Street, Brunton Avenue, Johnston Street and the Eastern Freeway will be upgraded as part of the project.

Victoria’s Minister for Roads and Road Safety, Luke Donnellan, said the continuousflow intersection at Swan Street would require an innovative design team willing to table new ideas and think outside the square to tackle the challenges of a significantly congested part of the transport network.

Minister Donnellan said the intersection would balance the movement of large volumes of people during peak travel periods and ensure the gateway to Melbourne’s premier events precinct was a safe, accessible and purpose-built destination.

He said the winning proponent would have an ability to successfully meet the needs of competing travel modes including motorists, public transport, pedestrians and cyclists – all in a congested and urban area.

“Hoddle Street is heavily congested and work can’t wait as 330,000 people use the corridor every day.

“It is a vital link and a key connection to the CBD; this upgrade will improve travel

22 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

times and make it safer for pedestrians and motorists.”

“We’ll be speaking to the community throughout the life of the project so we can ensure that our solutions meet their needs and Melbourne’s wider transport network.”

A separate Expressions of Interest process for a company to construct the project will open in late 2016, with the construction contract due to be awarded in early 2017.

Construction will begin at Swan Street in mid-2017, with completion of the full intersection upgrades expected in mid-2019.

Record jump in fuelefficient car sales

Australian consumers bought a record number of fuel-efficient, low-emissions cars in 2015.

The findings were made in a report into carbon dioxide emissions of new cars sold in 2015 which was released in the first week of April by the National Transport Commission.

The Carbon Emissions Intensity for New Australian Light Vehicles 2015 report used data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries to report on the carbon emissions intensity of passenger and light commercial vehicles sold in Australia during that year.

Data in the report showed the national average of carbon emissions intensity from new cars and light commercial vehicles bought during 2015 dropped by 1.9 per cent between 2014 and 2015.

Carbon emissions intensity is a measure of vehicle efficiency or intensity rather than a measure of actual vehicle emissions, which depends on many factors such as distance travelled, the nature of the driving and road and traffic conditions.

The report also found • about 90 per cent of all new vehicle sales in 2015 were from 15 makes. Of these, Audi and BMW had the lowest corporate average emissions intensity (149 g/km) and Jeep had the highest (223 g/km).

• of the top 15 makers in Australia, Nissan improved the most compared to 2014 figures, while Jeep recorded the smallest improvement in carbon emissions intensity.

• Australian manufacturers Holden, Ford and Toyota reduced their average emissions by 1.1 percent between 2014 and 2015.

• private buyers purchased vehicles with the lowest average emissions intensity (an average of 178 g/km), followed by business buyers (190 g/km) and government buyers (204 g/km).

Commission Chief Executive, Paul Retter, said more and more Australians were choosing fuel-efficient and low-emissions new cars.

“Today’s consumers are spoilt for choice.

In 2015 there were 72 different types of fuelefficient cars on the market up from just 59 in 2014. Back in 2008, there were just seven fuel-efficient cars available.”

Further analysis of the data by the NTC found the changing consumer preference for fuel-efficient and low-emissions vehicles led to Australia’s national average carbon emissions intensity falling 27 per cent in 2015 compared to 2002.

Mr Retter said while Australian consumers were increasingly choosing lower-emissions cars, the overwhelming majority still preferred other types of vehicles.

If all Australians who purchased a new vehicle in 2015 bought one with best-inclass emissions, the national average carbon emissions intensity would have dropped by 55 per cent compared to 2014.

Despite the improvements, Australian consumers buy passenger vehicles with carbon emissions intensity an average of 43 percent higher than their European counterparts, according to data from the European Environmental Agency used in the report.

“There are a number of reasons for this, including that Australians generally prefer heavier vehicles with bigger, more powerful engines, and our fuel prices are lower. Europeans also have more incentives to purchase low-emissions vehicles,” Mr Retter said.

INDUSTRY NEWS

train loading facilities at country sites, and inefficient track layouts at most sites that require excessive shunting.

The funding upgrade, part of the government’s Agriculture Infrastructure and Jobs Fund (AJIF), will result in an additional 500,000 tonnes of grain per year being transported by rail.

The shift will reduce annual road maintenance and accident costs by about $2.2 million.

Victoria exported $1.36 billion in grains in 2014-15 and the initiative will significantly boost grain export potential in the years ahead.

Currently, rail carries only about 50 per cent of grain to the Port of Geelong, and 20 per cent to the Port of Portland.

Blueprint for regional public transport in Victoria The first long-term strategy for public transport in regional Victoria sets out a short, medium and long-term plan for more trains, improved stations and better coach and bus services.

The Connecting Regional Victoria: Victoria’s Regional Network Development Plan (RNDP) – launched in Warragul on 30 May by Minister for Public Transport, Jacinta Allan – is designed to move passengers quickly, reliably and safely around regional Victoria.

Ms Allan said the strategy moved Victoria away from ad hoc public transport improvements to a more coordinated public transport network where trains, buses and coaches all worked together.

“It is the product of one of the most extensive public consultation programs ever carried out in regional Victoria, and reflects the passion, ingenuity and local knowledge of passengers who use our system every day.”

The RNDP outlines the series of infrastructure and rolling stock improvements required to deliver commuter-style services to Geelong, Bendigo, Ballarat, Seymour and Traralgon, including track upgrades, better signalling and new trains and stabling.

In the long term, its goal is to deliver trains at least every 20 minutes in the peak and every 40 minutes off-peak to these major regional centres.

There will be five services, five days a week on the outer regional lines of Warrnambool, Bairnsdale, Albury-Wodonga, Echuca, Swan Hill and Shepparton.

24 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

Regional coaches will be improved, with more services, better interchanges and a comprehensive review of routes to improve connections between towns and major regional centres.

Local bus services will also be reviewed and improved to ensure bus networks grow and change in line with regional communities.

The RNDP sets out plans for future improvements to ticketing on regional services, better passenger information, and major improvements to rail freight to support jobs and the regional economy.

Long-term freight strategy to advance Tasmania’s economy

Improving grain transport and reducing road costs

Grain will be moved more quickly from paddock to port because of an $8.5 million infrastructure investment in VicTrack sidings by the Victorian Government.

The project involves the upgrade of train loading infrastructure and sidings at 16 primary grain sites in Victoria and three in southern New South Wales.

The investment will address lost time and poor train utilisation caused by slow

A freight strategy released by the Tasmanian Government delivers what Infrastructure Minister, Rene Hidding, describes as an integrated framework to guide freight planning and investment across the state.

Mr Hidding said an efficient freight system was critical to supporting economic growth and job creation, which was the government’s number one priority.

“The strategy recognises the importance of an efficient and cost-effective freight system to Tasmanian businesses and the broader community.”

Its objective was, Minister Hidding said, to deliver a freight system that:

INDUSTRY NEWS

• provided commercially sustainable services which delivered competitive and sustainable prices over the long-term; • reflected current and future needs of customers and the broader community; • maximised supply chain efficiency and quality; • supported safe, reliable and secure freight provision; and • ensured freight service provision operated within an efficient and certain regulatory environment.

Mr Hidding said the strategy identified Tasmania’s key freight networks and assets, based on function and demand.

It provided certainty to the sector about priority needs and opportunities across the freight system, and the infrastructure standards users could expect over the long-term.

Key elements of the strategy included working with businesses to better understand the size and supply chain needs of Tasmania’s high-value, high-growth time-sensitive freight market.

It also provided for the development of a Burnie to Hobart freight corridor strategy that would provide a much-needed investment framework across road and rail for Tasmania’s key freight corridor.

Infrastructure Tasmania led the development of the strategy, which involved consultation with businesses, freight forwarders, service operators and peak organisations.

“The release of this strategy represents another important step for the government in addressing barriers to productivity and job creation in Tasmania,” said Mr Hidding.

The Tasmanian Integrated Freight Strategy is available at: www.stategrowth.tas.gov.au/ freightstrategy

reassess the proposed Stage 8 extension of the Roe Highway.

The delegates will recommend to Minister, Albert Jacob, whether the proposal should be approved, and if so, under what conditions.

As with any EPA report to the Minister, there will be a two-week public appeal period, administered independently by the Office of the Appeals Convenor.

The delegates appointed by Minister Jacob, are Gerard Early (Chair of the delegates), Professor Michael Poole and Dr Olga Barron.

Mr Early is a highly experienced environmental consultant and Professor Poole and Dr Barron are eminent scientists.

Based in Canberra, Mr Early is a consultant and former deputy secretary in the Commonwealth Department of Environment.

Professor Poole is a consultant and former head of the CSIRO Centre for Mediterranean Agricultural Research and Dr Barron is Principal Research Scientist and Group Leader Water Resources Sector at the CSIRO. Mr Jacob said he approved the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) formally delegating its powers to assess the highway extension proposal under the Environmental Protection Act 1986.

The proposal needed to be reassessed as a result of the WA Supreme Court's decision in December 2015 that the EPA's previous assessment was invalid.

The State Government is appealing the Supreme Court's decision to provide clarity for assessment and approval processes undertaken by state agencies and local governments.

Mr Jacob said the EPA board decided it should delegate its powers to an independent panel to avoid any actual or perceived conflicts of interest. None of the delegates was involved in the previous Roe 8 assessment.

Delegates chosen to reassess Roe 8 project

Local workforce to benefit from Adelaide’s Northern Connector

Three delegates from the environmental and scientific sectors have been selected by Western Australia’s Environment Minister to

Adelaide’s $985 million Northern Connector Project will set a new benchmark for local participation in public infrastructure projects by ensuring South Australian jobs and materials are maximised.

The 15.5 kilometre non-stop motorway will extend from the Northern Expressway interchange with Port Wakefield Road at Waterloo Corner to the Port River Expressway and the South Road Superway interchange at Wingfield.

It will link the Northern Expressway and the South Road Superway, with three lanes in each direction, a posted speed limit of 110 kilometres-an-hour and four road interchanges.

Major contractor for the project, Lendlease, will establish NorthHub – an employment, skills and training centre to help northern jobseekers secure at least half of the 480 jobs a-year on average on the project, particularly displaced automotive workers.

Other local participation measures will include: • at least 90 per cent of all labour hours to be undertaken by South Australians; • at least 20 per cent of all labour hours to be undertaken by apprentices and trainees, Aboriginal workers and people facing barriers to employment; and • approximately 70 per cent of steel used on the project to be sourced from Arrium in Whyalla.

NorthHub will be a centre for vocational education and training, and other service providers to meet on-site with industry partners, subcontractors and workers.

A dedicated Employment Development Team will also be established to work closely with the Northern Connector Jobs Taskforce to maximise opportunities for local workers.

The head of the taskforce, Lee Odenwalder, said it was pleasing to see a major contractor like Lendlease putting first those who should most benefit from a major construction project – the people of Adelaide’s northern suburbs.

“As the head of the taskforce, I have been working closely with northern suburbs MPs, local government, job networks and other stakeholders to ensure we make the most of this billion-dollar investment.

“Similar jobs taskforces ensured 58 per cent of the 1,800 workers on the Southern Expressway duplication came from the south, while for the Northern Expressway, almost half were from the northern suburbs.”

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 25

MAJOR PROJECTS

Image courtesy City of Gold Coast

"Seamless public transport is at the forefront of our transport planning and construction of Stage 2 is about to deliver just that.”

GoldLinQ Chairman, John Witheriff, said it was committed to partnering with government to deliver a world-class light rail system for the Gold Coast.

"Stage 2 will be delivered using robust and innovative design and construction methodologies that will provide certainty of delivery in time for the games, and help lessen construction impacts wherever possible," Mr Witheriff said.

"The Stage 2 alignment uses existing road and rail corridors which will further reduce impacts, and GoldLinQ and CPB Contractors will work with the community to ensure it is well informed throughout the construction process."

Successful design and construction bidder, CPB Contractors, has started site investigation works on Stage 2, which will include three new light rail stations at Parkwood East, Parkwood and Helensvale, an extra 1,400 park' n' ride carparks at Helensvale and Parkwood stations, and four new trams.

Partnership formalised to deliver Gold Coast light rail extension

Upgraded safety standards for Melbourne’s City Loop

The Queensland Government and GoldLinQ formally entered into a new partnership at the end of April to deliver the Gold Coast light rail extension in time for the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

As the Operator Franchisee, GoldLinQ was contracted by the government for the design, construction, operations and maintenance of the Gold Coast light rail system.

State Minister for Transport and the Commonwealth Games, Stirling Hinchliffe, said the contract signing between GoldLinQ and its construction partners CPB Contractors, Bombardier Transportation and Keolis Downer signalled the start of work on the 7.3 kilometre extension.

"Stage 2 will transform public transport on the Gold Coast and deliver an integrated light rail system for the city that connects to the heavy rail at Helensvale station," Mr Hinchliffe said.

"The light rail extension will help ease road congestion and deliver much-needed new capacity for the transport network to cater for population growth on the Gold Coast.

"Stage 2 will improve regional connectivity by integrating public transport options and providing customers with easy transfer between light rail, heavy rail and bus at Helensvale.

"A shared pathway next to the light rail along the Smith Street Motorway will also support residents who want more active transport options,” Mr Hinchliffe said.

The project is expected to generate up to 1,000 direct and indirect jobs and GoldLinQ has committed to achieving a high level of local involvement in the workforce during the construction phase.

The $420 million undertaking comprises a $270 million contribution from the Queensland Government, a $95 million share from the Australian Government and up to $55 million from the City of Gold Coast.

City of Gold Coast Mayor, Tom Tate, said south east Queensland's population was forecast to grow substantially in the next decade and the light rail system was vital to servicing the needs of the growing city.

"Stage 2 will connect our city's light rail with heavy rail and on to the burgeoning economic hub of Brisbane," Mayor Tate said.

Improved trespasser detection and fire prevention systems will be installed in the four underground tunnels and three underground stations of Melbourne’s City Loop in a $134 million safety and security upgrade.

The upgrade will take place over the next three years, and make the city loop safer for the 130,000 passengers who use it every day.

The improvements will include state-of-the-art intruder detection technology, along with CCTV cameras, alarms and platform barriers.

Sprinkler systems in Melbourne Central, Parliament and Flagstaff stations will be upgraded, and a smoke management system will be installed to keep passengers safe in the event of a fire.

Minister for Public Transport, Jacinta Allan, said the upgrade would help save lives and also reduce major delays caused by loop shutdowns while reports of trespassers are investigated.

“This is the vital safety upgrade that the City Loop needs now, while we get on with the project that the loop needs for the future – Melbourne Metro Rail.”

Ms Allan said the 2012 Victorian Ombudsman’s report into rail safety in the City Loop recommended the safety improvements.

The Minister said they were part of the broader investment the government was making in the heart of Melbourne’s rail system.

The $11 billion dollar Melbourne Metro Rail Project will unlock the congestion in the heart of the network by building a new cross-city tunnel, with new CBD stations connected directly to the city loop.

26 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

MAJOR PROJECTS

Key expressions of interest for Melbourne Metro Preparatory work on Melbourne’s multi-billion-dollar Metro Tunnel project gathered pace in April and May with the release of two key Expressions of Interest.

The Melbourne Metro project will comprise nine kilometre twin tunnels under Melbourne’s Central Business District and five new underground stations.

On 28 April, the Victorian Government announced the EOI for the Public Private Partnership (PPP) – expected to be in the range of $6 billion.

The second EOI was announced on 12 May and related to signalling for the project.

In making the announcement regarding the PPP, Acting Premier, James Merlino, and Minister for Public Transport, Jacinta Allan, said the start of the Metro Tunnel procurement process had been made possible by the government’s decision to fully fund and deliver the project.

Mr Merlino and Ms Allan said while government would welcome a partnership from any future Commonwealth Government, the project simply could not wait any longer.

The guaranteed funding, the Ministers contended, had given the market the stability it needed to enter the tender process, after significant interest from some of the world’s biggest construction and engineering firms.

The Metro Tunnel will give the Cranbourne, Pakenham and Sunbury lines their own tunnel through the CBD, which will free-up space in the City Loop to run more trains in and out of the central business district.

“Melbourne is growing, but we can’t run more trains because the City Loop is full,” Minister Allan said.

“The Metro Tunnel will free-up space in the Loop to run more trains in and out of the City.

“We’re looking to partner with the world’s best to build the backbone of a better train system for Melbourne – the Metro Tunnels and five new stations.”

Early works begin next year, with the major construction delivered through this package to start in 2018, and the project set to create 3,700 Victorian jobs.

The EOI process for the PPP was due to close on 9 June.

Minister Allan joined with Premier, Daniel Andrews, on 12 May to announce Expressions of Interest for the Metro Tunnel Project Rail Systems Alliance.

The alliance will design, develop and deliver up to $1 billion worth of signalling, communications and other related systems on the Metro Tunnel.

The works will install high-capacity signalling on the SunburyCranbourne/Pakenham line, a new cross-city tunnel created by the project meaning more services can be run at shorter intervals.

Passenger safety will be improved with international-style platform screen doors built in the Metro Tunnel’s five new underground stations, enabled by the new signalling and dedicated fleet of next generation trains.

The Melbourne Metro Rail Authority will also now deliver the trial of high-capacity signalling on the network through the Rail Systems Alliance, building on work by Public Transport Victoria over the past year.

“The Metro Tunnel’s advanced signalling will deliver more trains, more often, and help create 3,900 jobs. We’re not just talking about innovation, jobs and growth – we’re getting it done,” said Premier Andrews As part of the project, the technology will be trialled using modern X’Trapolis trains on a section of the South Morang line, to enable a more seamless roll-out on the Metro Tunnel and across the busiest lines on the network in the future.

“Next-generation signalling will be tested with the newest trains on the network and rolled out ahead of the Metro Tunnel, so it’s ready for the new network we’re building,” said Minister Allan.

“We’re fully funding the Metro Tunnel and 65 high-capacity trains so we can run trains in and out of the city and create a system where trains come so often you don’t need a timetable – you just turn up and go.”

Expressions of Interest in the Rail Systems Alliance, which are expected from all over the world, were scheduled to close on 23 June.

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 27

MAJOR PROJECTS

O-Bahn priority bus lanes open Two priority bus lanes for the $160 million O-Bahn City Access Project are operational.

The city-bound bus lane in the centre of Hackney Road opened in mid-April while the northbound priority bus lane between the Dequetteville Terrace/North Terrace intersection and Richmond Street started carrying buses in the second week of May. The priority lanes separate hundreds of O-Bahn buses each day from general traffic, providing a faster run and improving travel times.

The northbound central bus lane between Richmond Street and the Gilberton portal will be completed in late 2016 when the Hackney Road bridge widening is completed.

The O-Bahn City Access Project will comprise central priority bus lanes from the O-Bahn portal at Gilberton – in Adelaide’s inner north – to a 650-metre dedicated bus tunnel near the National Wine Centre emerging near Grenfell Street in the city centre.

The project will improve travel times and reliability for more than 31,000 people who use the O-Bahn each day and more than 79,000 road users who use this part of Adelaide’s Inner Ring Route.

It will employ about 450 South Australians and is expected to be complete by late 2017.

South Australia’s Transport and Infrastructure Minister, Stephen Mullighan, said the project would help increase public transport efficiency.

“By removing buses from the rest of the traffic we are not only giving our most popular public transport network a better run, we are also removing thousands of buses from the road corridor, freeing-up space for more cars.

“This project is about delivering more reliable service for our bus passengers and faster journeys and fewer delays for all road users on this part of the Inner Ring Route.

The tunnel option offers improved productivity and safety benefits over the previously announced design of a surface upgrade of Stock Road and Leach Highway.

It will have less impact on residential and commercial properties.

A tunnel from the Stock/Winterfold Road intersection to the junction of Stirling Highway and High Street in Fremantle will now be incorporated into the Perth Freight Link project design.

Canberra has agreed to provide an extra $260.8 million for the cost of the tunnel, bringing its total commitment to $1.2 billion for the $1.9 billion Perth Freight Link.

Together with the Gateway WA and Northlink WA projects, the Perth Freight Link project will form part of an upgraded freight connection from Muchea through the Perth urban area to Fremantle Port.

The project is designed to help drive stronger growth, more jobs and better community amenity, by moving products to market at a lower cost, more safely and with less disruption to local communities along Perth's transport routes.

It will: • create a new high-standard freight connection between the Roe Highway and the Fremantle Port, reducing transport costs and improving efficiency; • facilitate the transport of freight along the metropolitan East-West freight corridor to Fremantle and between the city's key strategic industrial areas; • improve road safety and reduce the freight industry's impact on the community through greater segregation of freight and passenger vehicle movements along key urban arterial roads; and • support 2,400 direct jobs and 10,000 jobs indirectly.

The Australian Government’s decision to provide extra funding for the tunnel option was released in a statement on 12 April by Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, Finance Minister, Mathias Cormann, and Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Darren Chester.

Gateway WA project completed ahead of schedule

Extra funding for Perth Freight Link tunnel option

The Australian Government agreed in April to provide additional funding for the second stage tunnel option of the Perth Freight Link following a request from Western Australia.

28 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

The $986 million Gateway WA project was completed in the first half of April – almost a year ahead of schedule and under budget.

The project has delivered a safer and more efficient transport network around Perth Airport and the freight and industrial areas of Kewdale and Forrestfield.

MAJOR PROJECTS

It was undertaken by an alliance consisting of CPB Contractors, Georgiou, GHD, AECOM and BG&E, together with Main Roads Western Australia.

The Gateway WA project was the largest road development constructed in Perth to date and it was jointly funded through a $676 million investment from the Australian Government and $310 million from the Western Australian Government.

The project employed over 1,000 construction workers at its peak and delivers a fully upgraded road network around Perth Airport and nearby Forrestfield and Kewdale industrial estates.

As a result, commuters and businesses have better and safer access to the airport and surrounding industrial areas.

The Gateway WA project involved: • the construction and upgrade of five main interchanges; • widening Tonkin Highway to six lanes between Great Eastern Highway and Roe Highway; and • upgrading Leach Highway between Tonkin Highway and Orrong Road to expressway standard.

It incorporates road and bridge improvements, around 21 kilometres of shared path and local connections for pedestrians and cyclists, approximately seven kilometres of noise/screen walls, a major landscaping program and the use of Intelligent Transport System technology.

The Gateway WA project will ease congestion, improve safety and reduce delays for the thousands of road users who access the airport and surrounding areas every day.

The road network now has the capacity to cater for increasing demand. The number of passengers travelling to and from Perth Airport is expected to double in the next decade and freight transport movements within the Kewdale Industrial Precinct are also expected to double by 2030.

Planning approval underway for Sydney Metro City & Southwest

The planning approval process has started for Sydney’s newest metro rail project, with major construction set to begin in 2017.

The Sydney Metro City & Southwest is the second stage of Sydney’s new rail line. The stage will comprise a 30-kilometre line extending metro rail from the end of Sydney Metro Northwest at Chatswood

Artist's impression of the planned Crows Nest Station, which will be constructed as part of the Sydney Metro & Southwest project.

under Sydney Harbour, through new CBD stations and south west to Bankstown. It is due to open in 2024 with the capacity to run a metro train every two minutes each way through the centre of Sydney.

Once built, the line will be able to move more people in the busiest peak hour than the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Harbour Tunnel combined.

Sydney Metro City & Southwest will mean: • around 30 million fewer car trips annually in 2036; • a metro trip from Chatswood to Central will take just 15 minutes – 11 minutes faster than the existing suburban railway system; • new twin railway tunnels will be built, stretching 15.5 kilometres from Chatswood to Sydenham and more than 40 metres below the surface of Sydney Harbour; • a specialised tunnel boring machine combining two types of tunnelling technology will be required to deal with the unique ground conditions under Sydney Harbour; and • more than 6,200 jobs created at the peak of construction in 2017-18.

The Metro extension under the Harbour into the city will take pressure off the congested Wynyard and Town Hall stations. Martin Place will also become a major interchange, where passengers can switch between lines to travel on different parts of the network.

The public can have its say on the project’s new stations at Crows Nest, Victoria Cross, Barangaroo, Martin Place, Pitt Street, Central and Waterloo as part of the first Environmental Impact Statement.

Submissions close 27 June 2016.

All images courtesy Sydney Metro

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 29

MAJOR PROJECTS

Top field of constructors vies for Western Distributor

Perth’s airport rail line negotiations completed

What the Victorian Government describes as a “world-class field of international constructors” has been invited to express interest in the $5.5 billion Western Distributor project.

The project was released to the market by the government two weeks after it was fully funded in the April State Budget 2016/17.

It was developed by Transurban and submitted to the government as a market-led proposal.

Premier Daniel Andrews, Minister for Roads, Luke Donnellan, and Transurban’s CEO, Scott Charlton, said the constructors were invited to express their interest in the Western Distributor after an extensive market engagement process.

The firms are: • John Holland and CPB Contractors Joint Venture; • Lend Lease and Bouygues Joint Venture; • Rizzani De Eccher Australia P/L; • Bechtel Infrastructure Australia P/L; and • Salini Impregilo S.p.A. Mr Andrews, Mr Donnellan and Mr Charlton said the constructors had a proven track record of building freeways, tunnels and landmark bridges in highly urbanised environments, and achieving high quality urban design outcomes. They said an updated reference design would be developed in response to the ongoing extensive community and stakeholder consultation, and would be released mid-year in time for the next stage of the tender process.

The tender process will be complete by the end of 2016, and the design will be thoroughly assessed through the Environmental Effects Statement (EES) process.

The Western Distributor’s new tunnel and second river crossing will cut travel time from Geelong and the west by 20 minutes. It will reduce congestion, boost the Victorian economy and create 5,600 new jobs.

Key elements of the project are: • a tunnel under Yarraville, with options for portal locations – the length of the tunnel to be considered during the planning phase; • ramps directly connecting the West Gate Freeway to Hyde Street for trucks carrying dangerous goods; • two additional lanes in each direction on the West Gate Freeway between the M80 Ring Road and Williamstown Road; • a bridge over the Maribyrnong River joining an elevated road along Footscray Road; • connections to the Port of Melbourne – with links to Appleton Dock Road, McKenzie Road and Dock Link Road being considered; • connections to CityLink with options to enhance access to the CBD; • more lanes and upgraded roadside technology on the Monash Freeway between Warrigal Road, Chadstone and Koo Wee Rup Road, Pakenham; • improvements to connections to Webb Dock, with upgrades to Cook Street and the West Gate Freeway-to-Bolte Bridge ramp; • new cycling and walking paths; and • smart roadways technology to enhance the performance of the M1 managed motorway.

Construction will start in late 2017 and the project will be completed in 2022.

“We’re developing this project in consultation with local residents and businesses, local councils and industry to deliver the future infrastructure needs of Melbourne,” Mr Donnellan said.

“We expect the construction market will bring their experience and innovation to further enhance this important project.”

A joint venture between Italian company, Salini Impregilo, and the Perthbased operation, NRW Pty Ltd, has been awarded the $1.176 billion contract to design, construct and maintain the ForrestfieldAirport Link.

Salini Impregilo holds 80 per cent of the SINRW joint venture structure and NRW Holdings has a 20 per cent stake.

In addition, NRW has the opportunity to provide contract services directly to the project.

The Italian company is a global player in the infrastructure sector with operations in more than 50 countries and a turnover of more than $7.3 billion, while NRW Holdings is a diversified provider of contract services to the infrastructure and resources sectors.

The Forrestfield-Airport Link will connect the existing Midland Line near Bayswater Station and will run to Forrestfield through underground tunnels.

The WA Government-funded project is designed to improve connections to-and-from Perth Airport, the capital’s eastern suburbs and regional centres.

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NRW, Jules Pemberton, said the awarding of the project was a significant milestone in the company’s history.

“The contract is of strategic importance to NRW, forming a key part of our diversification strategy,” Mr Pemberton said.

“Our involvement in this world class project with global construction company, Salini Impregilo, supports the development of NRW’s overall service capability and exposure to other opportunities in the major contracts space.”

Premier, Colin Barnett, said a recent $490 million payment from the Australian Government to WA would go towards the transformational project.

"SINRW are contracted to build the eight kilometres of rail tunnels and three stations for the Forrestfield Line, as well as maintenance of the tunnel and civil structures for 10 years after completion.

"This is a huge milestone on the path to delivering the project, which will change the face of Perth's eastern corridor and give people direct access to the airport by public transport.

"It's the biggest expansion of the city's rail system since the Mandurah rail line was completed."

Transport Minister, Dean Nalder, said early work valued at $370 million was already underway for construction of the line, including geotechnical work, contract management and land purchases.

"Various forward works have been underway at Forrestfield since November 2015 and I expect the joint venture to mobilise on site in the coming months. The project's direct employment is expected to peak at about 600 workers," Mr Nalder said.

Two of the stations on the Forrestfield-Airport Link have been renamed - Belmont (formerly Airport West) and Airport Central (formerly Consolidated Airport) - to more accurately reflect their purpose and locations. The rail line will be tunnelled underground from a junction near Bayswater Station, under the Swan River and the airport, and out to Forrestfield. It is due to open in 2020.

30 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

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Nick Holden, founder of Modular Wall Systems™, commented: “The Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads has the toughest specifications in Australia. We are proud to see EnduroMax™ panels that span up to 4.2 metres, exceed these requirements and be considered for future projects within the state. With its superior performance, noise

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ROAD SAFETY

A GLOBAL QUEST FOR IMPROVING AUSTRALIA’S ROAD SAFETY Internationally, Australia is known for its fine weather and glorious beaches, for its healthy, outdoor lifestyles and easy-going attitudes. It is largely seen as a vast land-of-plenty, which is safe, clean and a very desirable place to live. Aussies like to think of themselves as a modern, forward-thinking and progressive people with an eye to the future.

When it comes to Australia’s roads however, it is a somewhat different story.

With its vast road and motorway networks to maintain with limited resources, it’s often harsh and difficult conditions and its somewhat crowded cities and towns, its reputation for road safety often leaves a lot to be desired.

Figures produced by AAPA (the Australian Asphalt Pavement Association) in a recent survey conducted in Victoria show an alarming number of incidents and near-misses reported by their member companies operating within roadwork zones across the state. These figures alone, multiplied across the country as a whole, indicate a worrying capacity for accidents, injuries and fatalities on our roads, which should be of serious concern to us all.

Paul Bennett is the Managing Director of Brisbane-based SafeGear Australia and has worked in the Australian safety industry at all levels for more than ten years. His experiences, coupled with a fatal road incident near his home, have convinced him that a significant proportion of road accidents/incidents are avoidable, and a great deal more in terms of prevention could be done.

This was the catalyst which inspired Paul to begin actively seeking out new and innovative road safety measures and other related technological developments from around the

world and within the home market, which could contribute to improving the Australian road safety system. This resulted in repeated trips to Europe, North America, the Middle East and Far East and involved working closely with suppliers and manufacturers as well as innovators and other system developers.

To date, Paul has identified a range of potentially beneficial products; which include photoluminescent safety clothing (which is tough and washable, and derives its entire power source directly from the sun’s UV rays) and an LED-enhanced ‘intelligent’ traffic signalling and pedestrian crossing system, capable of transforming dangerous junctions and other accident ‘black spots’.

One of the most promising areas of interest and development however, is the field of ‘Emergency Stopping Devices’ (ESD’s) which are designed to bring vehicles approaching a dangerous obstacle, work zone or other area of danger, to a forced but controlled stop.

Paul explains “Emergency Stopping Devices are an exciting new development in road safety and have the capacity to make a real difference. For example, imagine a lane closed on a motorway for essential repairs and a driver approaching the scene that hasn’t noticed or understood the warning signs.

At motorway speeds, a catastrophe could be about to happen, resulting in significant injuries/fatalities to the vehicle occupants and the road workers."

To deal with such a potentially serious scenario, Paul continues “a series of ingenious barriers have been developed. They are designed to ‘capture’ the front of an oncoming vehicle (usually by lifting the front wheels off

the road surface) and by using the weight and momentum of the vehicle itself, they apply massive rubber-like pads to the road surface. This creates enormous friction which dramatically reduces the vehicle’s speed in a surprisingly short distance. The emphasis is not to cause the vehicle to crash, but instead to bring the vehicle to a speedy but CONTROLLED stop, whilst causing as little damage and trauma to the vehicle as possible.”

Early trials of such systems has been encouraging, and in particular monitored testing has shown that a 10 tonne runaway truck travelling at 80 kph can be safely brought to a controlled stop in around 42 metres. A series of custom-designed barriers are being developed to handle a variety of hazardous conditions.

Paul adds “I am passionate about improving safety on Australia’s roads and will be leaving on another fact-finding trip to Japan and other Far Eastern locations shortly.

It is my sincere hope that once these new systems have proved themselves and been thoroughly tested and approved for Australian conditions, I will be able to use my company SafeGear Australia to specialise in making such safety applications available to authorities responsible for road safety throughout Australia.”

Paul concludes “There should never be compromise in terms of road safety and it is essential that any such changes are made for all the right reasons.”

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 33

ROAD SAFETY

MOTORCYCLIST PROTECTION IN THE HUNTER The Broke-Wollombi Road in the Hunter Region of New South Wales has recently been upgraded to feature new guardrail and underrun, specifically designed for the protection of motorcyclists.

Singleton Council was tasked with responding to a number of accidents reported along the windy stretch of road which is a popular route for motorcyclists.

The solution was one that incorporated shielding the riders from harmful impacts without compromising the occupant safety of four-wheel vehicles.

The increasingly popular Ezy Guard Guardrail system with the retro-fitted Ingal Motorcycle Protection Rail (MPR) was chosen as the preferred system for this project.

The decision reflected a number of strategies being implemented to reduce risks to motorcycle riders in New South Wales, as well as the research that has gone into developing simple, economic infrastructure solutions and employing them in recognised problem areas.

34 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

The guardrail was manufactured in Minto, New South Wales, by leading safety barrier supplier, Ingal Civil Products, and transported to the long, quiet stretch of road just south of Singleton.

The experienced installer, Guardrail Systems, regularly services safety upgrade projects in the north of the state.

Road users may be less familiar with the second rail which runs underneath the guardrail, effectively included in the interest of protecting vulnerable motorcyclists from harm.

The Ingal MPR is mounted on a spring bracket which deflects away from the road, absorbing some of the impact from motorcyclists and redirecting them away from the posts and off-road hazards. The resulting impact severity is significantly reduced.

The installation of Ingal MPR as part of an Ezy Guard Guardrail system is one of the first of its kind in New South Wales since the system’s recent state-wide approval by Roads and Maritime Services.

The test used to evaluate these systems involves using a crash test dummy to

simulate the effects of a typical crash event, where a motorcycle rider is usually at risk of contacting the W Beam or off-road objects at high speeds.

In order to pass, the Ezy Guard MPR system was designed to provide superior safety results for a broader range of road users than the traditional W Beam system.

Ingal Civil Products’ “Z” shape post and “Smart bracket” are designed to be space efficient and more economical, due to an overall reduction in steel volume compared to other commonly used systems, providing some improvement to the overall environmental impact of the project.

The completed work will provide greater safety for the motorcycle community.

The implementation of seven specifically targeted sections, which total over one kilometre, is designed to reduce the frequency of unnecessary fatalities and injuries to motorcycle riders.

It is a positive sign the issue is being taken seriously by the industry.

ROAD SAFETY

Continued funding for key vehicle safety rating program The Australasian New Car Assessment Program has been allocated more than $2 million in Australian Government funding over the next two years.

The $2.2 million in assistance was announced

by Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Darren Chester, during National Road Safety Week from 1-8 May. “The Australian Government aims for a safe system approach to reducing road trauma through safer drivers on safer roads in safer vehicles,” Mr Chester said.

“Road crashes devastate too many families and communities with over 1,200 lives lost each year and more than 30,000 people seriously injured.

“Safety should be top-of-mind every time we get in our cars and Australians need to be mindful of the benefits of purchasing cars with high safety ratings.

“When purchasing a vehicle, it is important to remember that not all cars are created equal.

The combination of a sound structure and good restraint systems will provide the best chance of survival in a crash. Cars with active safety technologies, such as autonomous emergency braking (AEB) could, in fact, avoid a crash altogether.”

ANCAP Chair, Wendy Machin, said it was encouraging that the government had affirmed its commitment to the program and there was potential for further long-term support.

“This support, teamed with the longterm commitment of our other 22 member organisations, will further enhance our safety rating program as we move to ensure testing remains relevant over the next few years.

“Consumers will have greater information and choice which will encourage vehicle importers to ensure we have world best practice safety in our cars,” Ms Machin said.

“The ANCAP program is evolving to keep pace with new safety technologies and the progression to vehicle automation.

“We are developing a new global test protocol with our European counterparts so that vehicle crash test data can be shared between the organisations from 2018.”

Promoting road safety to SA visitors and new residents

Funding to tackle ‘black spots’ in New South Wales and Queensland

Visitors to South Australia are being better equipped to stay safe on the state’s roads with the launch of a new video series.

Four videos are available in a range of languages including English, French, German, Chinese, Arabic and Dari, and will be promoted by hire car providers and tourism operators.

The videos explain the laws regarding driving on an overseas licence, the road rules and tips for driving safely on South Australian roads in urban, regional and remote areas.

There were 17 fatal crashes and 10 serious injury crashes involving overseas drivers in South Australia from 2010-2014.

State Road Safety Minister, Peter Malinauskas, said road rules varied internationally so it was important to educate tourists, students and new residents about road rules for the safety of all road users.

“Communicating with these drivers in their own language is the best way to get the message through,” said Mr Malinauskas.

“We hope these materials will ensure overseas visitors are well-informed and remain safe on our roads.”

Developed in consultation with SA Police, Education Adelaide, Migration SA, Multicultural SA and the South Australian Tourism Commission, the videos will also be available to international students and new residents.

In addition, a “Welcome to South Australia – Know the Road Rules” postcard has been produced to encourage visitors to familiarise themselves with the road rules, licence requirements and to visit the website for information.

South Australian companies providing services to overseas visitors are encouraged to promote the videos, download the postcard and a “Drive on Left in Australia” windscreen sticker at: www.mylicence.sa.gov.au/visitors_ to_south_australia

Nearly $89 million is being invested under the national Black Spot Program to help reduce road crashes in New South Wales and Queensland.

The New South Wales share of $55.1 million will be used to eradicate 216 black spots, while in Queensland $33.6 million will be spent on 89 projects.

Thirty-four fatal and 1,123 injury crashes have been recorded at the black spots in NSW, and nine fatal and 348 injury crashes recorded at similar locations north of the border.

The Black Spot Program targets road locations where crashes are occurring, reducing the risk of crashes through funding measures such as traffic signals and roundabouts at dangerous locations.

The panel that reviews priorities for the program in New South Wales comprises representatives from the NRMA, NSW Federation of P&C Associations, The Institute of Public Works Engineering Australia, NSW Police and state and local government.

In Queensland the panel includes representatives from the RACQ, Queensland Trucking Association, Queensland Emergency Services, Bicycle Queensland, the QUT Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety, Queensland Police and state and local government.

The Australian Government has committed $500 million to the Black Spot Program from 2014-15 to 2018-19, including an additional $200 million over two years from 2015-16 to improve road safety across the nation.

ANCAP Chair, Wendy Machin

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 35

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Tougher stand against Victorians who drinkdrive Victorian motorists convicted of drink driving will be required to use an alcohol interlock device, under legislation to be introduced shortly into the state’s Parliament.

Alcohol-related driver fatalities are conservatively estimated to cost at least $270 million per year.

Anyone found to be driving with a blood alcohol content of more the point-05 will be required to drive vehicles fitted with an alcohol interlock device for a specified period, depending on the severity of the offence.

Alcohol interlock devices are currently only mandatory for full-licence offenders with a blood alcohol content of at least point-07, repeat offenders and those on a probationary licence or learner permit.

Currently, most full-licence holders caught with a reading of between point-05 and point-07 will receive a fine and lose 10 demerit points.

“Too many drivers pay the fine and forget about the potential consequences of drinkdriving. The families and friends of victims don’t have that luxury,” said Minister for Roads and Road Safety, Luke Donnellan.

“These changes will remind drink drivers of their actions and limit the chance of reoffending.”

Drink driving accounts for 15-20 per cent of motorists killed on Victorian roads per year and 15 per cent of motorists seriously injured.

Repeat drink drivers make up 20 per cent of drink drivers detected by police and up to 30 per cent of drivers involved in fatal crashes.

36 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

“Disturbingly, around 20 per cent of drink drivers are repeat offenders,” Minister Donnellan said.

“Fines and demerit points alone aren’t working – more is needed to help reduce the number of Victorians who lose their lives or are seriously injured on our roads every year because of drink driving.”

Those driving commercial vehicles, including taxis, buses, heavy vehicles and tow trucks, with a blood alcohol content over zero will also receive a mandatory interlock device and will lose their right of repeal.

Wider range of helmets means safer Tasmanian motorcyclists

Tasmania has joined Queensland, Victoria, New South Wales and the Northern Territory in allowing the use of motorcycle helmets that meet the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe Regulations, as well as the current Australian Standard.

Tasmania’s Minister for Police and Emergency Management, Rene Hidding, said the UN/ECE standard 22-05 was considered to provide the same level of safety protection to motorcycle riders as the Australian Standard.

Mr Hidding said the state’s road rules had been amended to allow for the change.

He said the benefits of amending the legislation included: • a wider range of motorcycle helmets that come in a greater range of sizes; • increased consumer competition driving down purchasing costs; and • harmonisation across jurisdictions making it easier for riders to ensure their helmet is legally compliant as they cross state boundaries.

The decision to legalise the UN/ECE standard is supported by the Australian and Tasmanian Motorcycle Councils, various motorcycling clubs and groups, as well as helmet importers based in Tasmania.

High-tech weapon in fight against heavy vehicle driver fatigue One of the most high-tech network monitoring systems in the world will be implemented by the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator to help enforce regulations covering driver fatigue.

The Australian Government is redirecting more than $4 million to the regulator (NHVR) as part of its decision to abolish the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal (RSRT).

“Safety is at the heart of the government's plans for the abolition of the RSRT because we recognise the reasons behind accidents are complex and require a modern, multi-faceted approach to improve safety,” said Darren Chester, Minister for Infrastructure and Transport.

“Funding allocated to the former tribunal will now be better utilised to develop new targeted safety measures including monitoring of heavy vehicles with a national network of cameras.

The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator outlined to all state Transport Ministers during May a plan to integrate more than 70 camera sites into a single national monitoring system.

“Heavy vehicle monitoring sites will be linked up through one national system,

ROAD SAFETY

putting an end the ad-hoc approach to heavy vehicle visibility that currently exists across the road freight network,” Minister Chester said.

“National visibility of vehicle movements across state boundaries will allow the NHVR and its partner agencies to identify drivers and operators that systematically flout fatigue rules.

“Non-compliance with the rules will result in a formal investigation across the entire supply chain to determine the root cause of why it is happening,” Mr Chester said.

NHVR Chair, Bruce Baird, said the additional funding for the regulator would deliver further safety initiatives across the supply chain, in addition to the regulator's existing safety program.

“Along with the roll-out of electronic work diaries and newer safer heavy vehicles that incorporate advanced safety systems, a national camera network will put us on a path to one of the most high-tech monitoring networks in the world,” Mr Baird said.

“As part of our comprehensive approach to safety we are working with the industry to improve roadworthiness with a survey of 9,000 vehicles to test the health of the fleet.

“New codes of practice guidelines and further education on everyone's role across the supply chain, including the adoption of safety management practices, will be delivered in the coming months.

“We've also developed a new national inspection manual to ensure consistent inspections and enforcement across Australia.

“Our National Heavy Vehicle Accreditation Scheme, which targets maintenance and fatigue while delivering productivity benefits for operators who invest in robust and auditable management systems, had nearly 6,100 operators accredited last year.

“We've been transitioning all Advanced Fatigue Management operators to a national scheme under the Heavy Vehicle National Law, allowing operators to easily adopt a risk-management approach to fatigue,” Mr Baird said.

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 37

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Drive So Others Survive – National Road Safety Week theme

New Road Safety Camera Commissioner for Victoria A retired solicitor with more than 30 years’ experience in the legal fraternity, John Voyage, is Victoria’s new Road Safety Camera Commissioner.

The commissioner provides independent oversight of Victoria’s camera network, including red-light, mobile and fixedcameras to ensure the system is accurate and contributes to safer roads.

Mr Voyage was part of the Law Institute of Victoria’s Road Safety Committee, chaired the Law Institute’s Transport Accident Committee and contributed to a number of Victorian Parliamentary Road Safety Committee inquiries during his legal career.

He holds a Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Laws from Monash University, and was a partner at Maurice Blackburn from 1990 until 2014.

His appointment follows the retirement in February of Gordon Lewis, Victoria’s inaugural Road Safety Camera Commissioner.

Improved road safety for Queensland A market-led proposal (MLP) for a new Queensland Driving Excellence Centre has moved to the detailed assessment phase.

The motorists’ group, RACQ, will acquire the centre at an agreed price and undertake a $15 million, five-year redevelopment program of the facility.

RACQ will undertake further due diligence on the proposal and prepare a detailed submission for final consideration.

38 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

If the proposal is given the green light, the ageing driver training centre will be transformed into a world-class road safety training facility.

It would become a hub for government, education and industry groups to research, design and test new vehicle and road safety technologies.

RACQ Group Chief Executive Officer, Ian Gillespie, said the proposal would provide a massive boost to Queensland’s road safety program.

“It will allow RACQ to dedicate the funds and the resources to create a world-class road safety facility,” Mr Gillespie said.

“There’s nothing like this in Queensland at the moment. We intend to develop a truly world class centre of excellence for driving on the site.

“It will be a leading training centre for young drivers - some of our most vulnerable road users – to be able to learn everything they need to know in a safe, controlled environment.

“The centre will also be designed for technical and high performance vehicle research and testing.

“Additionally we’ll be able to offer specialised training for disadvantaged and remote community drivers, a vital service in a state as vast as Queensland.”

State Road Safety Minister, Mark Bailey, said the centre would draw on international best practice emerging around safe driving and approaches to influencing driver behaviour and attitudes.

“RACQ has a long record of delivering on a range of driver training and safety initiatives to frontline essential services, organisations and individuals.

“If RACQ meets the criteria of the MLP process and proceeds with the project, it will expand the current facility and bolster programs to reduce accidents, injuries and deaths on our roads.”

Mr Bailey said the proposal was endorsed by a range of road safety stakeholders at the government’s third Safer Roads, Safer Queensland Forum earlier this year.

The 2016 Yellow Ribbon National Road Safety week (NRSW) was marked throughout Australia from 1-8 May. Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Darren Chester, said the annual event, first held in May 2012, had become an important event on the road safety calendar.

The Principal Partners for safety week included Safer Australian Roads and Highways (SARAH), the Australian Automobile Association (AAA), Road Safety Education Ltd, Altus Traffic Australia and state and territory governments.

“The themes of this year's Yellow Ribbon National Road Safety week were “Drive So Others Survive!” and “Stop Driving Blind” – a call for drivers to avoid distractions while driving,” Mr Chester said.

“Road crashes affect far too many Australian families and communities, causing over 1,200 deaths and over 30,000 serious injuries each year.

“The National Road Safety Strategy sets out a plan to reduce the annual numbers of deaths and serious injuries on our roads by at least 30 per cent by 2020.”

Minister Chester said a three-year Action Plan was released in November 2014, to support delivery of the national strategy.

“The primary focus is on national efforts that will deliver or support significant long-term improvements to the safety of Australia's road transport system.”

Mr Chester said the work of SARAH Group – in particular President, Peter Frazer – had been a positive influence on ensuring road safety remained at the forefront of people's minds.

“SARAH's main focus is protecting vulnerable road users, particularly emergency services personnel and first responders on roads and roadsides,” Mr Chester said.

“Any number of deaths is too many, and while we have seen a 12 per cent reduction from the strategy baseline period (2008-2010), the recent increase demonstrates the need for us to reaffirm our commitment to achieving much greater reductions under the National Road Safety Strategy.”

ITS SPECIAL FEATURE

Intelligent Transport Systems News and Feature Articles

ITS SPECIAL FEATURE

OPTIMISM AS

MELBOURNE 2016 DRAWS NEARER “We’re in great shape.”

The response from Brian Negus, President of ITS Australia, when asked by Highway Engineering Australia how preparations were progressing for the 2016 ITS World Congress to be held in Melbourne in October.

“Exhibition sales have reached the minimum target we set and we’ve just about achieved the ambitious target we set in regard to sponsorship for the Congress,” Mr Negus said.

“We’re five months away from Melbourne 2016 and we have a wide range of exhibitors from Australia and around the world. We’ve reached the minimum target, but there’s more room in the exhibition centre to increase the quality of what will be a top notch display of ITS products and services.

“In regard to sponsorship, there are still great opportunities for companies in the ITS space that want to ‘get their names up in lights’.

Mr Negus said there had been an immediate response to the early bird registration period for the Congress, which would be open until 5 July.

“We’re already getting hundreds through the door and our promotion of the Congress across Australia and overseas has triggered a great reaction with people saying ‘it sounds fantastic; we’re definitely coming to Melbourne’.”

Mr Negus said Melbourne’s success in being named the World’s Most Liveable City in 2015 – the fifth consecutive year it achieved the honour – had reinforced the theme of October’s Congress, “ITS Enhancing Liveable Cities and Communities”.

“When we selected Melbourne as the site for Australia’s bid five years ago and adopted the theme, the perception was probably more focused on the technical aspects of intelligent transport systems.

“In the meantime, people have started to get a better understanding of how those systems contribute to and complement liveability and economic development.

“And now, importantly, politicians are also starting to think the same way about ITS and transport infrastructure advancing the economy, the functionality and the liveability of cities and communities.”

Mr Negus said some of the latest keynote speakers confirmed for the World Congress reinforced the main topics to be discussed; topics including connected and automated vehicles, smart cities, connectivity and big data – especially big data analytics – and mobility as a service.

“Japan is a key player in advancing connected and automated vehicles as it develops proposals and strategies for connected cities to meet the needs of an ageing and declining population.

“Shin Morishita from the Bureau of Science, Technology and Innovation, Cabinet Office Japan, has a leading role in the advancement of ITS in his country and his presentation will be eagerly anticipated.

40 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

Brian Negus

“David Buttner, President of the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries and President of Toyota Australia, will also be presenting at the Congress. Toyota in Japan and Australia are leaders in the connected and automated vehicle sector, and Mr Buttner’s insights into the impacts of those vehicles also covering the views of FCAI, will be thought provoking.”

Two speakers just secured for the Plenary Session on Smart Cities are Men Leong Chew – Chief Executive, Land Transport Authority, Singapore – and Mike Mrdak, Secretary of the Federal Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development.

“It’s really great to have a leading player from Singapore engaged in the debate over Smart Cities. Singapore is a global commerce, finance and transport hub, and Men Leong Chew and the Authority are doing a huge amount of work in developing the island city-state as a smart city.

“Australia is also doing a lot of work in the area of smart cities, particularly on the eastern seaboard.

“Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne are facing really huge densities in their urban environments. So also having Mike Mrdak presenting will give us the Australian perspective on what initiatives are taking place to improve liveability in rapidly expanding urban areas.”

Mr Negus urged everyone with an interest in ITS and its critical role in advancing the development of smart cities to attend Melbourne 2016.

“The last time a World Congress was staged in Australia was in Sydney in 2001 – 15 years ago.

“We’re unlikely to see another World Congress in Australia in the next two decades. The Melbourne event is being staged at a critical time in the development of intelligent transport systems to improve lifestyle and liveability, and community engagement is really important in ensuring that Australia remains at the forefront of this rapidly advancing field.

“Now is the time to put your hand up and come to the World Congress to experience international and national developments in the ITS space.”

ITS SPECIAL FEATURE

TOLLING SECTOR KEY FACTOR IN ADVANCING

GLOBAL TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE The tolling industry is providing a way to find funding for transport infrastructure across the globe at a time when traditional sources are not meeting demand, according to an executive with the international company, Cubic Transportation Systems.

“The only way that infrastructure providers can add new highways is through bonds that are tied to tolling revenue,” said Jon Ramirez, Director of Tolling worldwide at CTS. Cubic Transportation Systems is a leading integrator of payment and information technology and services to create intelligent travel solutions for public transport authorities and operators.

It has been a global leader in the sector for more than 40 years, processing $18 billion in transportation revenue each year and serving more than 38 million people every day.

Mr Ramirez said agencies and traffic infrastructure operators in the US and other destinations he’d visited realised they had to generate revenue themselves because very little would come from the state.

“Building facilities within facilities (upgrading existing infrastructure) is a quick way to bring projects on line. So now there is a revenue stream they can borrow against.

“Many agencies and operators are feeling the pain of not having enough funding and once they get their heads around the policy issue, things will change rapidly.”

Mr Ramirez was part of a high profile panel that discussed international tolling projects at the National Electronic Tolling Forum in Brisbane on 25-26 May; the forum was organised by ITS Australia and had the theme “Smart City Tolling”.

The event featured leading authorities in the field and examined solutions to smart city congestion using emerging and ITS technologies.

During the session, Mr Ramirez updated delegates on Cubic’s NextCity Vision, which he described as a “revolutionary vision in transportation management and integrated traveller payment and information”.

He said the modes of transport available to people were becoming increasingly interconnected, particularly in major cities with rapidly increasing populations.

Cubic's Dirk Van de Meerssche and Jon Ramirez

“By capturing high-quality, integrated, real-time data on how a city’s population moves, we can help to improve the effectiveness of the transport network."

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 41

ITS SPECIAL FEATURE

“In the US, they’re called HOT lanes or High Occupancy Toll lanes. High occupancy vehicles with two or more people would be able to use them without charge. But during peak periods, you would give the opportunity to other drivers to use those lanes for a fee. As a result, the through-put of those facilities increases 10-to-20 per cent because users won’t drive on them during periods when they’re hit with a charge."

“By capturing high-quality, integrated, real-time data on how a city’s population moves, we can help to improve the effectiveness of the transport network.

“Actionable information is the key to ensuring that the network runs as smoothly and efficiently as possible. It will also help commuters to make smarter, more informed decisions.”

Mr Ramirez said as part of the NextCity initiative, Cubic was awarded in November last year a $52 million, five-year contract by the New Hampshire Department of Transportation to deliver a new back office function to support the state’s toll roads.

“The new system will deliver billing, collection, enforcement and customer service operations, including a redesigned website and a new mobile app for the department’s customers.”

Cubic is undertaking the design, testing, installation and maintenance services, and the new system is expected to be operating in late 2016.

42 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

“We’re currently short-listed for similar projects in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates and in Ireland. And then we have a number of upcoming procurements in the United States, so the tolling market is really taking advantage of the lack of funding across the globe for infrastructure.”

An executive with CTS in Australia – Dirk Van de Meerssche, Sales and Marketing Director New South Wales – said the company was focusing on bringing public transport and vehicle traffic into the tolling space.

Mr Ramirez said CTS had worked on projects involving upgrades to existing major infrastructure because of the funding constraints on constructing new roads and bridges.

“In those projects, lanes were added in the centre median and motorists were charged to use them.

“In the US, they’re called HOT lanes or High Occupancy Toll lanes. High occupancy vehicles with two or more

people would be able to use them without charge. But during peak periods, you would give the opportunity to other drivers to use those lanes for a fee.

“As a result, the through-put of those facilities increases 10-to-20 per cent because users won’t drive on them during periods when they’re hit with a charge. You can always push through more vehicles when they’re travelling at highway speeds.

“There’s been a reluctance in the US to add tolling facilities to otherwise free infrastructure, but because there aren’t any new dollars to fund crumbling infrastructure, I think you’re going to see that occur in coming years.

“In the case of greenfield systems where infrastructure is constructed from scratch, tolling facilities are built-in.”

Mr Van de Meerssche said in the case of Sydney, there were massive new infrastructure projects in the roads and public transport sectors. He cited the West Connex and North Connex road projects, and the North West Rail and the light rail developments.

“Our ministers with responsibility for transport (Transport and Infrastructure Minister, Andrew Constance, and Roads and Maritime Services Minister, Duncan Gay) are pushing a more integrated approach to road and public transport services.

“They are displaying the commitment to move towards multiple modes of transport.

“TMC operated by Transport for New South Wales used to be traffic management centred, but its mission now is to become transport management centred which includes traffic and public transport.

“We can see the will is there to move towards multiple modes of transport which is fitting in with Cubic’s NextCity Vision.

Mr Ramirez said there was a heightened interest in cities around the world in establishing a regional capability to improve travel.

“The only way you’re going to achieve that is by virtue of providing consolidated information to travellers; to let them know there are multiple modes of travel and to let them know the costs.

“If you want to drive them to a particular mode, there are discount plans.

“Regional traffic managers really like that idea,” said Mr Ramirez.

“The problem is political – trying to bring together all the disparate transportation agencies and get them to work together because typically they are adversaries competing for dollars.

“The technology is there; it’s the political will that needs to come to the fore.”

ITS SPECIAL FEATURE

EUROPEAN TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT SYSTEM ADAPTABLE TO GLOBAL MARKET An Advanced Traffic Management System (ATMS) being developed for the national road operators in England and the Netherlands by Kapsch TrafficCom will have applications to markets across the globe.

The collaborative program CHARM was initiated by Highways England (HE) and the Netherlands’ Rijkswaterstaat (RWS).

In a contract from August 2015 valued at around €60 million, Kapsch will deliver and install its DYNAC ATMS® in two traffic management centres, one in England and one in the Netherlands.

The CHARM program is designed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the HE and RWS traffic management centres, and to promote safe, fast and reliable road mobility.

The delivery of DYNAC ATMS® will also achieve another key objective of CHARM – to move HE and RWS to an open, modular ATMS architecture that is integrated, flexible and scalable. Details of the initiative were outlined to delegates at the National Electronic Tolling Forum 2016 conducted by ITS Australia in Brisbane on 25-26 May this year.

Kapsch TrafficCom’s Executive Vice President Oceania, Soren Tellegen, told Highway Engineering Australia that Highways England and Rijkswaterstaat commissioned the CHARM program to significantly improve the effectiveness of these traffic management centres and to decrease their operational costs.

“Highways England and Rijkswaterstaat have created the CHARM Program to develop shared requirements for a new generation of traffic management systems, and jointly procure suitable systems, with a primary objective of delivering better operational processes for their traffic management centres.

“After speaking to industry they realised there were significant benefits from taking a co-ordinated approach, and so they have ended up producing joint specifications to take to the market.

“We are very pleased to have been successful in winning both the English and the Dutch contracts to deliver our DYNAC ATMS® across these two countries,” said Mr Tellegen.

“The program provides for an Advanced Traffic Management System that goes beyond what’s currently available in the market.

“The most important thing Highways England and Rijkswaterstaat did was to create a new de facto standard for Advanced Traffic Management Systems in Europe. As a consequence of their work we anticipate the roll-out of essentially the same specification into other countries in Europe, and quite likely beyond.”

Mr Tellegen said Kapsch TrafficCom specialises in technology, solutions and services for the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) market, with a portfolio ranging from standalone products to nation-wide systems.

The company’s portfolio of Advanced Traffic Management Systems (ATMS) includes over 40 systems that provide integrated management of traffic and operations for critical infrastructure.

Mr Tellegen said advances in the traffic management sector were focusing on predictive analytics.

“It’s important for highway and road operators to be able to understand the effects that myriad different types of incidents and special events can have on future traffic flow.

One of Kapsch TrafficCom’s global control rooms.

44 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

ITS SPECIAL FEATURE

“Operators want systems that enable them to identify, respond to and actively manage incidents quickly and safely and, importantly, they need to be able to predict what’s going to happen in the future based on current trends.

“This enables them to increase safety on their road networks and to better manage and even avoid costly congestion.”

Mr Tellegen said Kapsch TrafficCom’s business has expanded into the traffic management sector over the last five years, but noted that its tolling systems are arguably still what Kapsch is best known for around the globe.

“A major part of our core business is based on tolling and we’ve been one of the world

leaders in electronic tolling collection since the late 1990s.”

“Traditional tolling, as we know it today, will likely head down a different path in the future,” said Mr Tellegen.

“We’re ultimately moving towards more holistic schemes based on overall road-use, due to the universal need to change road funding systems being experienced by governments and road operations agencies around the world.

“Roads are currently primarily funded by fuel excise, and the problem with excise is that as cars become more efficient, and electric vehicles become prevalent, the revenue government derives from fuel excise is

diminishing. That’s just not sustainable over the long-term.

“At some point, governments will be forced to rethink how they collect revenue for operating and maintaining roads, and as that happens, there will be more and more schemes where public roads are funded through road-user charging schemes.

“There’ll be a fundamental shift in the way we charge for road use, which will require the development and deployment of new types of solutions.

“Kapsch is actively working with government and other road infrastructure stakeholders to design and develop appropriate solutions

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ITS SPECIAL FEATURE

through its global research and development capability.”

Mr Tellegen said government is undertaking due diligence, as the change towards road user charging represents a fundamental shift that requires bringing all stakeholders along for the journey.

“You’re probably looking at 10-to-15 years before you have a paradigm shift in the way charging is implemented.

“This transition is something that will, and should, take time to be implemented, because all affected aspects need to be considered, and the general public needs to understand the basis for it.”

In the Australian tolling sector, Kapsch TrafficCom is installing a new tolling system for the Sydney Harbour Bridge under a contract with New South Wales Roads and Maritime Services.

“The Sydney Harbour Bridge has one of the most complex traffic profiles for an automatic tolling system. The bridge has a very high proportion of stop-and-go traffic, which is not ideal for the typical laser-based classification systems used in the past.

“Past systems required a constant traffic flow; the traffic doesn’t have to move quickly or slowly, but it does need to move at a consistent flow.

“In contrast, Kapsch’s 3D Stereoscopic camera-based vehicle detection and classification system looks down over the road and tracks all vehicles through a detection zone of about 30 metres.

46 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

“Kapsch’s roadside tolling system detects and tracks all vehicles that pass through a toll-point, during which time the system also detects and correlates the position of the onboard units in the car with the vehicle details reported by the classification system and the image capture system.

“This results in highly accurate correlation between vehicle detection and classification, the licence plate images taken of those vehicles, and the tags detected in the vehicle.

“The system supports all traffic conditions, from stop-start traffic that is often stationary under the gantry through to very high-speed traffic flows that are well beyond the legal speed limits on Australian highways.”

Mr Tellegen said the new tolling system for the Sydney Harbour Bridge is expected to be operating by early 2017.

“We’re undertaking preparatory work on the infrastructure, but it’s difficult to close the bridge to do road works. RMS is responsible for the civil works and it is coordinating that aspect of the project.

“We expect to see gantries being installed and commissioned in the second half of this year, and the project is scheduled to be up and running in the early part of 2017.”

Mr Tellegen said the new system will help to improve traffic flow on the bridge.

“Our gantries are being installed on the northern side of the bridge, and when they go live the existing toll booths will then be able to be removed from the southern side of the bridge.

“Motorists will experience safer and faster travel times as the existing legacy toll booths restrict the flow of traffic to 40 kilometres-an-hour due to the narrow approach lanes.

“You will then see greatly improved traffic flows across the bridge and the productivity benefits of that will be significant. The bridge is currently one of the biggest traffic bottlenecks in Sydney.”

Mr Tellegen said the nature of electronic tags in vehicles and multi-lane, free-flow in Australia has the nation well prepared for future vehicle technologies such as connected vehicles.

“If you look at tolling in Australia compared to the United States; the US is, I’d venture to say, up to 20 years behind where we’ve come. This is mainly due to the smaller number of systems we had to convert when electronic tolling technology became available, and the early push of the tolling industry in Australia towards cross-industry interoperability standards.

“Australians have been early adopters of all-electronic tolling in preference to legacy constrained-lane tolling, and we have also been conscious that electronic tolling has actively contributed to improving road safety in addition to reducing the impact of congestion.

“As a result, we are familiar in Australia with the infrastructure required, which will help with the acceptance of connected and automated vehicles.”

Returns to his family quicker and safer.

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ITS SPECIAL FEATURE

ITS KEY FOCUS OF THE BOSCH GROUP

The importance that the Bosch Group places on intelligent transport systems is highlighted by the fact that its Mobility Solutions business sector, of which ITS is a part, contributes around 68 per cent of the group’s turnover.

In 2015, that global turnover was €70.6 billion.

The Bosch Group is a leading supplier of technology and services around the world. It employs about 375,000 people and its operations are divided into four business sectors: Mobility Solutions, Industrial Technology, Consumer Goods, and Energy and Building Technology.

“ITS globally is probably one of the fastest moving fields of mobility; it is a key component of the sector and we place a high priority on it,” said Mark Jackman, Regional President Chassis Control at Bosch Australia.

“The Mobility Solutions sector previously had a different name focused on cars, but we changed it because we recognised that ITS is not limited to passenger vehicles; it includes practically anything fitted with wheels and even some things that don’t have them.

“In addition to our strong automotive field, we have projects running in rail, the agriculture sector, and off-road, mining and airport equipment.”

Mr Jackman said connected and automated vehicles were part of Bosch’s core competence and his team in Australia had the existing skill sets to drive future ITS projects.

“One day our people are working on highly advanced automotive safety systems for customers like Ford Australia and the next day they will be using their skills to work on IoT projects in agriculture.”

Mr Jackman said connected and automated vehicles were essential to the smooth functioning of smart cities, which were a key component of IoT or the Internet of Things.

“The Internet of Things clearly conveys that everything is connected, including vehicles that people are driving now and vehicles in which people will be riding in the future.

“Having those vehicles connected to their homes, to industry, to roadside infrastructure, to traffic and weather conditions, and to have the capability for vehicles to talk to each other to warn occupants of hazards will be part of the way smart cities operate.

“The smart city of the future will basically allow the driver or occupant to drive straight to a parking space that’s been reserved for them, leave the vehicle and then let it park itself,” said Mr Jackman.

“Even today we have systems where drivers can return home, get out of the car, press the park button, and have the vehicle drive into the garage.

They are part of low-speed functionalities.

“Importantly, ITS also plays a huge role in road safety. The more connected you, your vehicle and your surroundings are, the more able they are to make decisions much faster than a human.”

48 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

Mr Jackman said Bosch was committed to its operations in Australia and was equally committed to a strong presence at the 2016 ITS World Congress in Melbourne in October.

He said the company was operating out of new headquarters at Clayton in Melbourne’s south east.

“The $40 million investment in the new headquarters and technical centre is a vote of confidence from the Bosch board of management. It is also a clear sign to the market in Australia that we are here to stay and have a role to play in the future, despite the decline of auto manufacturing.

“We’re well positioned to be a key player in ITS here in Australia.”

Mr Jackman said Bosch had a big role to play at Melbourne 2016 supported by the Victorian Government.

“I’m a Board member of ITS Australia and, as part of the Board, I’m keen to see that the Congress showcases the best Australia has to offer in the ITS space and also highlights to local businesses, stakeholders and legislators what is happening in the rest of the world.

“The Congress has a series of themes and Bosch has a role to play in almost all those themes.

“We’re investing millions of dollars in our preparations for the Congress – we’ll have a major exhibition space at the event and we’ll have several dozen people overseeing demonstrations, communications and simulation activities, as well as talking to relevant stakeholders.”

Mr Jackman said the work taking place in Australia in the mobility sector in general and in the ITS space in particular would establish the nation’s credentials.

“The awareness and the discussions that are going on in Australia are extraordinary.

“There is a large amount of activity involving all of the road safety stakeholders and infrastructure providers centred on how and what they need to do to make sure we are set up and ready for the future.

“I would say Australia is up there with the rest of the developed world in putting a high focus on ITS. With the work that’s been undertaken and the quality of that work, we’ll certainly set ourselves up to be amongst the top few nations in the future.”

Mr Jackman said he believed the collaboration between players in the ITS sector had been good.

“Because ITS is so broad – it involves companies, law makers and infrastructure responsibilities from nearly every position within the industry – everybody is keen to make sure they’re equally ready.

“The sharing of information has been quite refreshing, so the ability and desire for everybody to cooperate has been great and hence I think that means we will be set up for the future.”

ITS SPECIAL FEATURE

THE HUMAN AND ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF TRUCK PLATOONING The world’s first cross-border initiative involving six “platoons” of semi-automated trucks has shown that serious truck accidents can be reduced, jobs can be created and economies strengthened, according to an international expert on automated vehicles The trucks participated in the European Truck Platooning Challenge, staged in April by the Netherlands, as part of its Presidency of the European Union. They travelled from various European cities to the Dutch port city of Rotterdam.

The platoons comprised a range of hightech vehicles from a mix of manufacturers travelling in teams under automated precision on public roads to highlight the benefits of automated vehicle technologies to EU policy makers.

Automated driving expert – Bastiaan Krosse, TNO Program Manager Automated Driving – visited Adelaide from the Netherlands in the first week of June to meet with government, industry and SA Road Transport Association representatives.

Mr Krosse said serious heavy vehicle crashes on South Australia’s highways caused by loss of control and driver fatigue could become a thing of the past thanks to innovative use of technology.

He said in addition to major safety benefits, the use of technology, such as connected adaptive cruise control amongst trucks, could help stimulate an economy, drive jobs creation and achieve environmental benefits.

“We know that more than 90 per cent of crashes are typically caused by human error, but when that happens to involve a large truck, the consequences of even a minor lapse of attention behind the wheel can result in catastrophic – and often fatal – outcomes.

“That risk of human error is marginalised when you have trucks travelling in close convoy and virtually linked using state-of-theart driving support systems – technology that will revolutionise the transport and logistics industries.

“The trucks are constantly communicating with each other, so if the lead vehicle has to brake or stop suddenly, those behind can do so in zero reaction time and avoid the serious outcomes seen on our highways right now.”

In addition to road safety benefits, Mr Krosse said the use of automated connected

50 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

trucks meant transport operators could reduce their operating costs, increase their profit margins and have happier drivers.

“Fuel is a major budget impact to operators.

When trucks can safely drive close together at a constant speed and experience less acceleration or deceleration, cost savings can be made through less wear and tear on the vehicle and lower fuel consumption.

“Lower fuel consumption is also good for the environment through fewer CO2 emissions,” Mr Krosse said.

“The much shorter distance needed between vehicles means far less space is taken up on the road, and that brings more efficient traffic flows – particularly in urban areas.

“One of the challenges facing the Australian transport industry is the fact that it is difficult to attract skilled drivers for long-haul trips.

“This innovative technology makes it far more comfortable and safe for drivers. Much like pilots hand over the controls at some point in a flight, truck drivers would do the same thing during a long-haul journey, and be on standby should they need to resume control.

“There absolutely remains a place for heavy vehicle drivers, but there is little doubt their role will change in response to automated technologies.

“They may have to resume control in heavily congested areas such as the inner metropolitan area or CBD, but on the open road and in

controlled areas such as a loading terminal or depot, the automated driving technology will do the hard work for them.”

Australian Driverless Vehicle Initiative (ADVI) spokesperson, Rita Excel, said the organisation was pleased to host an international expert of the calibre of Mr Krosse.

“ADVI representatives recently went to the Netherlands to speak with technology developers and see the benefits of a connected truck demonstration first-hand, and we are now being assisted by TNO to develop an Australian demonstration to showcase this technology in automated heavy-vehicles,” Ms Excel said.

“Whether it is an owner-operator or a large national freight company, the costs associated with upgrading a truck or fleet will be well and truly offset by the efficiencies and safety benefits that come with utilising connected trucks as part of their transport and logistics activities.”

In his role as Program Manager Automated Driving with TNO, Mr Krosse has a strong drive to accelerate the deployment of cooperative automated systems, combining V2x (communication technology) and automated driving technologies.

He is co-chair of the iMobility WG on Automation and secretary of the Taskforce Electronics and Communication within EARPA, the European Automotive Research Partners Association.

ITS SPECIAL FEATURE

TRIAL OF ‘WORLD-FIRST’ TRAFFIC APP TO IMPROVE ADELAIDE’S TRAFFIC FLOW What’s described by South Australia’s Transport Minister, Stephen Mullighan, as a world-first traffic app, is being trialled in Adelaide.

The free app, developed in-house by SA’s Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, was launched in mid-April as part of the Operation Moving Traffic Initiative.

AddInsight broadcasts messages to drivers through their vehicle’s hands-free system about approaching delays, such as congestion and roadworks.

It taps into a network of Bluetooth receivers, which monitor Adelaide’s road network in realtime.

“The AddInsight app is like having a personal navigator in your car, giving you information in advance about hazards or delays ahead, so you can avoid them by finding an alternative route,” said Minister Mullighan.

AddInsight uses the most advanced traffic management system in Australia - Adelaide’s network of Bluetooth receivers which track traffic movements in real-time.

The receivers pick up Bluetooth signals from devices on-board passing vehicles, such as stereos and mobile phones, allowing the Traffic Management Centre to monitor and display travel times.

AddInsight is the only app in the world which can warn motorists of what’s ahead in realtime, making it more accurate and responsive than other apps, which use location services to identify congestion and can only warn of preplanned roadworks.

The Bluetooth data allows the centre to change traffic signals immediately in response to incidents and can also be used to accurately predict estimated travel times between destinations.

Travel times are broadcast on more than 47 electronic signs around metropolitan Adelaide to give motorists a choice of routes.

Both the Bluetooth network and the AddInsight app have been developed in-house by the Department for Planning, Transport and Infrastructure at a low cost. The SA Government will showcase the app at this year’s 23rd World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems in Melbourne.

The new app is available for download at Apple and Android app stores.

“We are always looking for new ways to help motorists navigate their way around the city more quickly and conveniently, particularly when our record investment on infrastructure

projects can lead to delays or changes to traffic conditions,” Mr Mullighan said.

“With our state-of-the-art Bluetooth network, we are already using this technology to warn motorists of hazards ahead and to provide alternative routes through our roadside messaging signs and the Traffic SA website. Now motorists are able to access this information without having to pull over to check their phones.

“This state-of-the-art technology is being developed right here in South Australia by the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, with a view to exporting it to the world.

“Already there is interest in adopting the technology interstate and overseas, with plans to sell the technology to Melbourne, Auckland, Hobart, Brisbane and Canberra,” Minister Mullighan said.

The Operation Moving Traffic Initiative provides low-cost simple solutions to tackle congestion on arterial roads.

The government announced last year that it would introduce a comprehensive set of laws to better manage roadworks, including penalties for the incorrect use of speed restrictions, for unnecessary and unauthorised closure of roads and traffic lanes, and delayed completion of roadworks.

And now it is adding a further series of measures to get motorists and other road users around Adelaide more quickly.

Longer travel times, particularly for freight and business travel, have a negative impact on South Australia’s economic productivity and competitiveness. The cost of road congestion across Greater Adelaide was about $1 billion per year in 2011, and is estimated to increase to $4 billion by 2031 without any improvements.

“While there is no doubt Adelaide needs to build projects such as the Torrens to Torrens, the Darlington Upgrade and the Northern Connector, we can also make life easier for motorists by adopting simple, sensible measures which don't cost billions of dollars,” Minister Mullighan said.

“The number of vehicles on our roads has increased by more than 20-per cent in the past decade or so, contributing to an eight-per cent decline in weekday travel speeds for cars and trucks.

“Reducing congestion across our city can not only improve travel speeds, but also provide immense economic benefits.”

“This state-of-the-art technology is being developed right here in South Australia by the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, with a view to exporting it to the world. Already there is interest in adopting the technology interstate and overseas, with plans to sell the technology to Melbourne, Auckland, Hobart, Brisbane and Canberra.”

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 51

ASPHALT IN FOCUS

THE DIAMOND ROAD IN LESOTHO How does a small Kingdom in Southern Africa capture the attention of road experts from all over the world? How can a jobsite in Lesotho, a small nation surrounded by its neighbour South Africa, represent one of the most extreme projects of the last 10 years?

This article describes how a road is built in the Lesotho mountains, about 200 kilometres from the capital, Maseru, by the Cooperative of Building and Cement workers from Ravenna (CMC).

CMC has been a MARINI client for many years and is involved in the construction of a 45 kilometre stretch of mountain road. This difficult jobsite is set on the tourist route to Afriski, a ski resort more than 3,000 metres in the mountains, home to winter sports enthusiasts from all over Africa.

It is a steep, winding road also used by vehicles transporting diamonds from the local mines. The conditions are extreme because of the height and conformation of the road. The stretch in question forms part of a long road network built throughout the country by various Italian constructors.

52 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

Up to the height of 2,000-2,500 metres the road has performed well.

But above 2,500 metres it encounters weather conditions which can become very bleak. The temperature range is wide, from 25 degrees celsius to below freezing within a few hours.

Ice formation and snow falls mean the road requires active maintenance and cleaning operations, which however, are not carried out with all the care and attention required by European standards.

In a few short years, snow ploughs have damaged the surface – which under other circumstances and with the right approach and equipment – would have lasted longer.

At 2,000 metres, the tree line disappears and the land becomes barren and stony. Sometimes the winter brings snowfalls as deep as twoto-three metres and temperatures drop as low as minus-10°C. CMC is busy with the reconstruction work on a 45 kilometre stretch of road.

It includes the demolition of the old pavement and the laying of the new layers – stabilising work and then 30 centimetres of base on which an 8-10 centimetre mat is laid (0-19 mm), given that the road must possess a certain amount of grip.

Because of the weather conditions, it is natural to use modified bitumen, resulting in easy laying operations and long-lasting road performance.

In Africa, the tendency is to build thin asphalt mats on very long roads, and this was the reason why CMC initially steered itself towards a continuous mix plant. In normal conditions, they are the smallest plants and the easiest to move when each section of road is completed and the worksite changes location.

Unfortunately, the plant pinpointed for the job didn’t meet the challenge, because of the difficulties with production capacity at a high altitude and because the grading curve of the asphalt mix needed to be tightly controlled.

So CMC focused its attention on a mobile batch plant: a small 80-90 tph plant on two easily transportable trailers. But here came the first difficulty. The plant had a small drum and, at an altitude of 3,200 metres, the productivity would decrease by 35-40 per cent.

Managing a burner when the oxygen supply is limited is not an easy task and CMC technicians are well aware of this. They had to determine how to regulate the speed of the fumes and how to manage the yield.

The production would have to be reduced to such an extent as to prevent CMC finishing the job at the given time. This is why CMC decided not to take any risks and to opt for another solution, given that further difficulties had arisen.

ASPHALT IN FOCUS

The eTOWER is designed to work with all recent developments for producing warm asphalts based on the introduction of liquid or solid additives, on the production of foam bitumen or specific cycles for use with RAP. It is a plant which can satisfy CMC’s needs to use a bitumen additive, a fluxing agent which allows work at -8°C. It turned out that the trailers were not homologated and would have to be loaded on other vehicles to be roadworthy.

In the meantime, another contract for CMC came up in Kenya – it was to impermeabilise a dam with a 50 centimetre asphalt core in a nature reserve on the edge of Lake Victoria.

The reserve is covered by strict work regulations and a special regard for ecology.

So the idea was that, once the job was finished in Lesotho, the plant would be moved to Kenya to work on the dam project for developing one of the most uncontaminated areas of the African continent.

MARINI suggested that CMC use a new plant which would have no problem in fulfilling production requirements at high altitude, was easily transportable and had all the necessary “green” technology of the latest generation MARINI plants.

CMC chose an eTOWER 2000 E206, a plant with easy-to-move component parts which are fitted into a container. Once the transport expenses had been simplified and reduced,

CMC decided it could add a bigger filtering bar to the eTOWER 2000 to diminish the effects of the altitude on the production levels.

The plant’s drum is a MARINI E206 fitted with the filter above the drying chamber, to guarantee significant savings in energy and site management – an excellent solution to stay within budget, while being environmentally friendly at the same time.

The eTOWER is designed to work with all recent developments for producing warm asphalts based on the introduction of liquid or solid additives, on the production of foam bitumen or specific cycles for use with RAP. It is a plant which can satisfy CMC’s needs to use a bitumen additive, a fluxing agent which allows work at -8°C. On this site, even the fuel supply is complex.

Bitumen transport tanks cannot negotiate the tight bends in the road leading to the plant, and the bitumen has to be supplied in drums, with all the difficulties that such a situation can bring.

CMC has fitted the plant with a melting chamber for the bitumen in drums and with a plant to modify the bitumen supplied by our Turkish branch.

On the site at 3,200 metres above sea level, there are 15 Italian expatriates presently organising the local team which fluctuates between 100 and 150 workers, depending on the different stages of work and the weather conditions.

It is CMC’s intention to count on this plant which is capable of producing 150 tph at a height of over 3,000 metres, with a mediumsize storage bin which means making the most out of the working day, and completing the job within the time schedule.

Today, the eTOWER 2000 E206 is up and operating, and within a few months, the road in Lesotho will be completed thanks to this wellresearched new MARINI asphalt plant.

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 53

ASPHALT IN FOCUS

MEETING THE CHALLENGE TEN-INCH THICK DRAINAGE BLANKET MAKES WATER DISAPPEAR

With asphalt being placed 40.6 centimetres (16 inches) thick, the widening of 27.4 kilometres (17 miles) of highway I-65, north of Bowling Green in the American state of Kentucky, is a challenging job for Scotty’s Contracting & Stone, LCC. Bowling Green is a manufacturing centre with a population of more than 63,000 people.

The locally-based contractor is paving the median to expand I-65 from a four-lane divided highway to three lanes in each direction. A concrete barrier wall is being constructed as a safety measure to separate traffic.

The existing asphalt pavement is being overlaid to match the slope and elevation of the additional lanes. Work on the $138 million project is expected to be complete in 2017.

54 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

A 25.4 cm (10 in) thick asphalt drainage lift, which isn’t structural, underlies the 40.6 cm (16 in) thick asphalt roadway.

“The drainage blanket is basically a mix of number 57 aggregate and liquid asphalt, so water will run right through it,” said John Williams, paving foreman.

“We’re laying about 15.2-17.8 cm (6-7 in) of the drainage blanket in the first lift, and then coming back with another lift. It’s easier to hit our specs that way.”

Water will drain to a rock grade and then to drainage boxes. The boxes, some as large as 3.66 metres (12 feet) wide and 16-feet long, are located in the middle of what was the median. Hundreds of boxes will be installed.

On top of the drainage lift, the Scotty’s crew is placing a pair of 10.2 cm (4 in) base lifts. After the concrete centre wall is poured, two more base lifts are being placed, topped by a 3.8 cm (1.5 in) surface lift.

Aggregate in the drainage blankets is 2.5 cm (1 in) to 3.8 cm (1.5 in) in diameter.

Other lifts contain 2.5 cm (1 in) aggregate.

Virgin material is used in the drainage lift.

Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP) is included in other lifts.

Scotty’s is using a Cat® AP1055E Paver on the job. “The paver has been working great. I like track machines on projects like this – the tracks help keep the paver stable when going around all the drainage boxes,” Mr Williams said.

A Weiler SF10 Fixed Screed is being used on the paver. Vibrators on the screed and extensions help improve mat quality.

“On the base lifts, the vibrators help increase compaction percentages by one-ortwo per cent. That helps the rollers out,” Mr Williams said.

Paving width is 4.57 m (15 ft). “The total paving width is 18.29 m (60 ft). We’re doing four, 4.57 m (15 ft) wide lanes.”

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ASPHALT IN FOCUS

Paver speed when placing the base course is 20-to-25 feet per minute.

“We try to run about 25 feet per minute on the paver and that usually gets us to about 268 metric tonnes (300 tons) per hour,” Mr Williams said. “We try to keep the paver moving at all times.”

The paver and screed, along with attention to detail, help the Scotty’s crew meet grade requirements. “Every lift is graded, so we have to stay on top of things to be sure that we hit our grades. It’s no problem with that paver and screed.

“I’ve been tickled with the smoothness of this project. Besides the paver and screed, it’s using the transfer machine and trying to not stop. We don’t want a lot of stopping and starting.”

Patience is one of the keys to success when placing thick lifts. “With the drainage lift, we lay

it and let it really cool out before we try to roll it,” Mr Williams said.

Weather and lift thickness help determine when compaction begins. “If it’s cooler, you can get on it quicker. If it’s hotter, you have to lay back a little longer. Some places we had to build the lift up and the operator had to lay off a whole lot longer.”

Scotty’s is using a pair of Cat CB64 Rollers for compaction. “We always try to shoot for the highest densities we possibly can; 100-to-105 per cent. It’s all about reaching or exceeding target density.”

Rolling patterns vary. “There may be more passes, there may be less. Right now, we’re making three passes with each machine.”

And the paver and compaction machines roll onward, moving the Commonwealth of Kentucky closer to its goal of widening I-65 to six lanes from Indiana to Tennessee.

“The project is badly needed because of I-65’s importance as a commercial and travel corridor, stretching from Chicago to Alabama. Kentucky is doing its part to keep the traveling public safe and the interstate free of congestion.”

Steve Beshear Kentucky Governor

Test of French high modulus hot mix asphalt on NSW south coast Enrobés à Module Élevé (EME) is a French high modulus hot mix asphalt technology enabling a reduction in asphalt thicknesses for heavy duty pavements with lower construction and maintenance work.

Uncovered during recent knowledge exchange exercises with global partners, EME demonstrates the value of collaboration and idea sharing amongst industry.

“We’ve been looking overseas for new technologies, and EME is one that’s been working and looks really promising,” said Bevan Sullivan, Fulton Hogan’s National Technical Manager.

“This design is new to Australia, but has been proven in Europe and the South Pacific.

56 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

“It’s got the potential to save money; lower thickness can give the same capacity through a more optimal mix design.”

Putting knowledge into practical application, Fulton Hogan working with Road and Maritime Services (RMS), led a recent demonstration of EME at Shellharbour, south of Wollongong on the New South Wales south coast.

The team laid 340 tonnes of EME at midnight on 8 February 2016, which was mixed at Fulton Hogan’s Kembla Grange plant.

In keeping with the collaboration mindset, all major asphalt producers were invited to attend through the Australian Asphalt Pavement Association.

“Quite a few turned up in the middle of the night to have a look,” said Richard Jenkins, Fulton Hogan Divisional Manager – Metro NSW.

“The exercise went as smoothly and seamlessly as it possibly could, a real credit to the team at the plant and the laying crew.”

Also on hand in Shellharbour was Richard Fulton, Fulton Hogan General Manager Planning & Development, who noted the importance of having a perpetual pavement option for customers to consider.

“EME can last longer, is stiffer and requires less asphalt in most cases; something that’s really appealing to the market,” said Mr Fulton.

“It will be really interesting to see the future for EME in Australia. We will be working with RMS to monitor the performance of the road surface. The results could firm up EME as an option for NSW.”

016

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ASPHALT IN FOCUS

Verifying asphalt quality VÖGELE RoadScan, a contactless temperature measurement system, makes paving quality measurable and verifiable.

Making quality measurable is one of the big issues for contractors and clients worldwide.

One of the key criteria for the durability of roads is maintaining a constant temperature of the freshly paved asphalt. As a result, the significance of area-wide temperature monitoring is currently on the rise in more and more markets. With RoadScan, VÖGELE's contactless temperature measurement system, the company is on the leading edge of this future trend.

The heart of the RoadScan system is an infra-red camera which scans the asphalt pavement behind the screed over the entire area.

What sets the system apart is its measuring accuracy. The VÖGELE system captures grids of 25 x 25 centimetre-sized tiles at a measuring width of 10 metres.

Each of these tiles contains up to 16 single measuring points which are then used to calculate a mean value.

That allows the system to capture the newly paved surface without gaps and so no theoretical or computed values need to be added. The measurable temperature range of RoadScan lies between 0°C and 250°C with a tolerance of only ±2°C.

58 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

The purpose of RoadScan's other components is to capture the base temperature before paving (pyrometer), record precise positional data (highprecision GPS receiver) and document the wind strength and direction, ambient temperature, air pressure and humidity (weather station available as an option).

The RoadScan system is intuitive to operate and can easily be activated from the paver operator’s ErgoPlus 3 console. The user views the temperatures currently being recorded on the colour display, and these are clearly visualised using thermal images and in real time.

The paver operator can program the colour scale to allow any deviation from the required temperature of the freshly paved asphalt to be quickly identified.

That makes RoadScan an effective instrument for ensuring high paving quality – without unduly increasing the paving team's work load.

The measurement data obtained using RoadScan is also stored in the paver operator's ErgoPlus 3 console. After paving, this data can be read-off via an external data storage device.

At the same time, VÖGELE has taken effective measures to protect the data via a specially designed memory stick which communicates with an interface on the

paver operator's ErgoPlus 3 console. This, in turn, transfers the data in encrypted form.

The data is then analysed in the office using the RoadScan Analysis web application, which presents the data in different types of diagrams and in a map view.

RoadScan can also be integrated into WITOS Paving. This IT-based tool for the process optimization of asphalt job sites helps companies to plan more transparently and respond flexibly to interruptions in ongoing operations, significantly increasing overall cost efficiency.

Stormwater Report

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STORMWATER REPORT

Stormwater Position Statement finalised Stormwater Queensland has prepared a position statement which sets out its stance on stormwater quality compliance pathways, with particular reference to stormwater quality offsets.

This Position Statement was informed by feedback received from Stormwater Queensland members and the broader industry.

The feedback included written responses to an earlier published draft Position Statement and oral feedback received during the “Stormwater Quality Offsets Forum” held in November 2015.

Stormwater Queensland said the Position Statement would be used as a platform to

represent members in collaboratively working with state and local governments, and other industry stakeholders, in developing an appropriate regulatory framework and guidelines.

Stormwater Queensland, in conjunction with Stormwater Australia, was also due to hold an update session on 21 June, focused on the New National Protocol for the Evaluation of Stormwater Quality Improvement Devices.

There are state-wide provisions for stormwater quality management in Queensland’s State Planning Policy, and many local governments also have stormwater quality provisions within their planning scheme.

Stormwater Queensland said there had been concerns over the past several years about the lack of a clear framework to verify the performance claims for proprietary stormwater products, also known as stormwater quality improvement devices.

This, it said, had become a point of tension in the development assessment process.

The protocol, to date, has a particular focus on providing guidance on field testing requirements, collection, analysis and presentation of data.

It also ensures the process is technically competent and sufficiently independent to support confidence in the outcomes.

Water Bill paves way for improved services Legislation which provides for improved delivery of water management and services across New South Wales has been signed into law after being approved by the state’s Parliament.

Minister for Lands and Water, Nial Blair, said the Water NSW Amendment (Staff Transfers) Bill was key to the management of critical water resources and the servicing of the state’s $3.5 billion irrigated agriculture sector.

“We’ve put water users at the centre of these reforms – creating the Department of Primary Industries Water (DPI Water) and Water NSW – and looked closely at which functions and activities are best delivered by each of those entities.

60 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

“This Bill is the next stage of these reforms, putting both DPI Water and Water NSW on a sustainable footing to deliver an improvement of services provided to customers, along with the removal of duplication and inefficiencies.”

Minister Blair said the bill facilitated the implementation of the transfer of functions to enable DPI Water to have a sharpened focus on policy, and water market regulation, with oversight of major water infrastructure projects.

He said Water NSW would focus on delivering quality water, all customer transactional dealings and all in-field services relating to groundwater and surface water.

“The reforms are consistent with NSW’s commitments under the National Water

Initiative and will improve the transparency and management of an effective water market in NSW.”

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STORMWATER REPORT

CULVERT AND TUNNEL BRIDGE MAINTENANCE: REPLACE, REHABILITATE OR DO NOTHING? This is the big question facing utility and transport system providers as ageing infrastructure starts to fail and as critical planned maintenance programs are side-lined in the drive for reduced budgets, cost savings and spend reductions.

In Australia, the matter of culvert inspection and maintenance came under increased scrutiny in 2007 after an incident resulting from a catastrophic culvert failure at Somersby, north of Sydney. Part of the Pacific Highway was washed away following torrential rains that collapsed the culvert structure.

Given the need for economical remediation solutions and for critical assets to remain functional, what type of rigid, self-supporting solutions are available for larger man-entry culverts and tunnels that will ensure 100-year design life?

Knowing the location and condition of the assets is key to answering that question. Much of Australia’s infrastructure was developed and constructed from the early 1900s through to the turn of the last century.

A lot was built piecemeal as urban development expanded, often filling streams and river valleys to flatten the land for new construction. As these extended profiles changed, construction methodology altered resulting in many multi-sized assets with poorly developed construction joints and bedding factors.

Originally, these assets were owned by local entities, but over the years with company mergers, corporate sales, government intervention and regional border changes, many of them were forgotten or lost and it was not until a failure occurred that they again materialised. When this happened, large sums of money were spent in emergency recovery leading to inefficiency, overspend, poor planning and, more often than not, the implementation of a solution that was perhaps not the best option had there been time to implement a “structural world class” solution.

Culvert washout: Old Pacific Highway Somersby Australia

Since the event, infrastructure providers have been tasked with implementing rigorous inspection and maintenance programs across the country.

They have actively encouraged industry to develop and produce innovative solutions to combat decay and erosion using trenchless technologies to minimise disruption to the public which depends on infrastructure at all times.

Spencer Court Culvert Collapse: Newburn UK With recent high profile incidents such as Somersby, worsened by increases in widespread flooding and heavy rainfall, is it time for road and rail asset owners to implement preventive maintenance to eliminate serious incidents and unplanned infrastructure downtime.

62 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

Broadford Culvert Repair - Victoria

Many of today’s remediation systems are designed for the small bore non-man entry market – they are generally classified as “flexible linings”, but are frequently offered as structural solutions for larger profile culvert and tunnel repairs.

They are generally suitable for small sections, but are not always appropriate for larger remedial proposals. They are nearly always limited in the lengths to which they can be applied without surface intervention.

This usually means excavations from the surface defeating the purpose of using a fully trenchless solution that avoids the asset’s closure, impact

STORMWATER REPORT

on the community, disruption and higher costs. An alternative is using Tunneline, a one-pass operation that restores structural integrity to existing assets throughout the rehabilitation process.

point as was the case for a 16 kilometre reline under Hong Kong central harbour back in the mid-1990s.

Elliptical Tunneline repair with fish passage invert: Tweedhead NSW

5.6m to 4.9m reline Rail Tunnel for ARTC

Tunneline uses light weight steel shutters that are assembled and compressed into the host structure regardless of shape or deformation.

It is a bespoke design tailored to the requirements of the particular contract so each design is individual and unique.

Tunneline uses conventional steel reinforcement and high strength concrete, all standard tried and tested materials used in traditional construction programs. Tunneline can be designed to fit any profile – arched, triangular and vaulted structures, round, spherical and ovoid shapes and, most importantly, box culvert profiles which historically have been notoriously difficult to structurally reline.

A major advantage of the Tunneline system is the ability of the formwork to adapt to changes in profile or alignment: the system can cope with changes in direction both horizontal and vertical, and access to these transition points is not required from the surface.

Tunneline will encompass deformations, open joints, missing masonry and voids without the need for extensive pre-works as the concrete is placed under pressure which fills all spaces available in-and-around the host structure.

It is not limited to pipes and culverts; the system can be adapted to strengthen viaduct arches, bridges and multi-spans as full relines or partial relines encapsulating the shoulders and soffits depending on what is required to satisfy the design requirement.

In addition, Tunneline stormwater and culvert rehabilitation allows for the asset to remain open and functional during the remediation process. ‘Less Cost, Less Waste, Less Impact’

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Projects have been delivered covering profiles ranging from 900 millimetres to nine metres in size and over distances of five metres to multi-kilometres. If required, they can be serviced from one single access

64 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

Mt.Ousley Culvert Rehabilitation: Wollongong, NSW

AUSTSTAB 2016 ANNUAL CONFERENCE MARKS 21 YEARS OF STABILISATION EXCELLENCE In 2016, at its annual conference, AustStab will celebrate 21 years since the incorporation of the association.

The conference will be held from 26-28 July at Sanctuary Cove Resort, Hope Island, in Queensland.

It was noted in the first AustStab News in December 1995: The Australian Stabilisation Industry Association was formed in mid-1995 to promote and enhance the soil stabilisation and road recycling industry in Australia.

The association commonly known as AustStab, was initiated by the major contractors and formulated the following objectives: • to promote the stabilisation and road recycling industry; • to set national standards of performance; • to assist and coordinate research, and • to educate and train people in the industry.

As noted in the newsletter, the founding members were Boral Road Services, Pavement Technology Ltd, Pioneer Road Services, Readymix Roads Group, Stabilised Pavements of Australia and Stabil-Lime Distributors.

The 21st Annual Conference will provide AustStab members with the opportunity to meet professionally to reflect on the successes of the last 21 years and on the changes and growth of the association during that time.

The coveted AustStab Cup will be sponsored again by Wirtgen. While networking opportunities are greatly valued by members, the conference also allows them to look after their health and well-being.

Members will have the chance to exercise and concentrate on their ability to perform together in a newly formed team, with an ambrose-style 18-hole competition on the Pines Golf Course at Sanctuary Cove Resort.

The format for the conference is a boardroom meeting style event, with members provided with the opportunity to be informed about, question and develop the strategic direction of AustStab during the first formal day of discussions.

Peter Evans, Deputy Chief Engineer (Pavements, Materials and Geotechnical), Department of Transport and Main Roads, Queensland Government, will present to the group.

The fifth annual AustStab Awards of Excellence, sponsored by Caterpillar, will be awarded at the annual Gala Dinner. The dinner will feature the new look and feel of AustStab, displaying most current logos of association members. The member feature wall was recently displayed at the Roads and Civil Works Expo in Melbourne.

This year's finalists and winners of the awards of excellence will join a distinguished group of previous winners, including Melbourne Airport (2015) and Downer Group (2012).

The awards provide the industry with an opportunity to support and promote excellence, and to celebrate achievements of the previous 12 months. To be eligible for most categories, contractors completing the work must be currently accredited with the AustStab ARRB Accredited Contractors Scheme.

A new award category that was included last year, the Young Stabiliser of the Year, was well received by the industry. This category is especially important to support and encourage the development of young people within a niche industry sector, which like the rest of the construction industry, is impacted by the challenges of an aging workforce.

On the third day of the conference,

members will commence the business of administering the AustStab working groups after enjoying freshly brewed coffee, provided by our sponsoring member, Astec.

Members will receive a copy of the newly released Guide to Pavement Stabilisation Construction Practice. The Guide is an updated version of a document released by Austroads in 2005, on the best practice for stabilisation works. It reflects the new look and feel of AustStab.

The guide includes a simple checklist for site supervisors new to stabilisation works.

It will be available free to all members attending the conference, and will be available to purchase from the AustStab website.

A new app will be used at the conference to help facilitate the conference in a 21st century way.

As this year is a milestone celebration year for AustStab, all honorary members have been invited to join the conference to see how the organisation has grown and developed to be recognised as the centre of stabilisation expertise in Australia, and arguably in the world.

It is the only international industry association specifically dedicated to the support of pavement stabilisation and pavement recycling. The organisation has grown to include nearly 50 member organisations, including all state road agencies, plant and binder suppliers, a larger group of contracting members and a passionate group of affiliate members.

Most members will have a representative in attendance. At the conference, they will see how AustStab has developed since its initial objectives to include collaboration, narration and education in a 21st century setting with a contemporary look and feel.

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 65

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66 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

AustStab - Evolving in a 21st Century Way In 2016, the look and feel of AustStab has changed.

At the association’s 20th conference in 2015, members of AustStab recognised it was important to evolve the organisation’s branding so it remained relevant in a 21st century setting.

The association undertook a review of its strategic position and aligned a new look and feel to its logo, stationary, website, EDM, specifications, published materials and tradeshow displays to reflect its current strategic direction.

The AustStab logo has evolved over time. The logo and the company name has retained a significant position in the hearts and minds of AustStab members and the broader industry.

In 2009, the logo developed to include the AustStab recycling wheel. The wheel is an evolution of the well recognised recycling system of the era. It is also representative of the rotor or drum used in centrally mounted mixers or pugmills used in stabilisation.

In 2016, a new colour pallet was added to the branding strategy to refresh the look and feel of the logo, and to welcome a new era for the association. With the new colour pallet the recycling wheel is central to the focused position that AustStab has in its areas of expertise.

Whilst retaining the freely available content, the AustStab website is progressing with a new look and feel, and navigation style. The website will have a more intuitive menu structure and allow users to navigate more freely to the sections they are interested in exploring.

The website is also used as a training booking portal and publications store point, and may continue to evolve in coming years to include the delivery of online educational tools.

The website and other social media platforms will evolve to interact more intuitively. Popular features will be retained, such as the news features section and the calendar, which are well used by members.

The focus of the website will be more external looking, allowing newly interested parties to find information more easily.

A signature look will be used across all publications, including the recently revised model specifications. Images will vary, depending on the publication style, to reflect the technological trends in plant and equipment.

All members’ images will be incorporated into the branding, marketing and technical materials used

by AustStab, with no preference given to a particular brand or organisation.

An example of the new look and feel is shown on the new Guide to Stabilisation Construction pocketbook.

The model specifications were updated in 2016 to include up-to-theminute developments from Austroads, industry best practice and general guidance notes, as well as the new look and feel.

The guidance notes will include references to best practice in stabilisation, as well as guidance on supporting systems such as work health and safety, environmental best practice and quality system implementation.

These publications are available to download in word format directly from the website and are intended to be modified to suit local conditions and contracts. This change will make specifying stabilisation works for a new consultant easier than in the past.

At AustStab, we want to respect and value the past, whilst remaining contemporary and relevant in a changing world, with the new look and feel across all media platforms.

FOAMED BITUMEN SPECIFICATIONS Foamed bitumen stabilisation (FBS) is gaining more popularity with road agencies as the advantages of this economical and time saving rehabilitation method are appreciated.

Road agencies in Queensland and New South Wales harmonised their foamed bitumen specifications as they shared their experiences.

AustStab saw the opportunity of bringing together the other state agencies to learn from these two states. This would, hopefully, give them improved knowledge and enable them to harmonise their specifications with the two states with the greatest experience.

ARRB made available its facilities in Melbourne and Austroads encouraged the initiative. AustStab facilitated a seminar to encourage harmonised FBS specifications across Australia and, possibly, New Zealand.

It was decided to use the most recent FBS specification from Queensland TMR as the starting point. TMR volunteered to send Jothi Ramanujam and Damian Volker to explain the philosophy of their specifications which were continually improved as more on-site experience was gained.

Mr Ramanujam explained the history of FBS in Queensland, showing how early problems were corrected. The technology had progressed rapidly over the last 16 years.

He pointed out that AustStab members had worked closely with TMR to develop

sound procedures. Australia has led the world in using FBS as a bound layer which has been used to produce very economical pavements.

Mr Volker started his session with news film footage of a fast rising flood overtopping a bridge in Queensland. At the time, roadworks were being carried out on the bridge approaches.

The photos that were shown after the water receded were dramatic; all the shoulders were washed away, but the newly laid FBS layer and its lime stabilised subgrade were completely unharmed. This is one of the experiences of TMR which has resulted in hundreds of kilometres of FBS being laid in recent years.

Mr Volker then outlined why many of the clauses were used. He explained how he had spent weeks in the field working with the accredited contractors to develop procedures to ensure a consistent product.

The procedures included accurate depth control and complete mixing of evenly distributed binders. The constant vigilance of the supervisor to control moisture achieved optimum compaction.

The presentations were highly informative and encouraged discussion from road authorities and ARRB. There was then a presentation from Greg Arnold showing the FBS experience in New Zealand.

Although the design method is different to Australia, it was a good introduction to alternative perspectives. Both countries are keen to further develop the technology by increasing its use; interestingly FBS is often used for new work in New Zealand.

Simon Kenworthy-Groen gave a presentation on the experience of FBS in Western Australia – the pavement materials were very different to the eastern states and were making mix design more difficult.

WAMR recently purchased foamed bitumen laboratory equipment to further advance its knowledge.

The forum was declared a great success by all who attended. AustStab would like to thank all the attendees for their contribution, especially the speakers. As a result of the forum, two states have already developed new FBS specification drafts incorporating TMR experience.

AustStab appreciates that all state road authorities seek its comments on specifications. This demonstrates how well the stabilisation industry works with the road agencies to improve stabilisation in Australia.

TMR, ARRB and AustStab are working closely together to develop National Foamed Bitumen test methods; again an indication how harmonisation is working well in the pavement market.

PRODUCT EVALUATION SCHEME ASSESSING EIGHT ROAD RELATED PRODUCTS Eight products are currently being assessed for certification under the TIPES or Transport Infrastructure Product Evaluation Scheme, run under the auspices of the ARRB Group Ltd. Five of the eight products under evaluation are in the category of nontraditional stabilisers; one product is in the bituminous products category; one in the construction equipment category and one in the road safety category.

And one of the products, in the nontraditional stabilisers category, has been accredited with provisional certification based on its past performance and laboratory results.

ARRB’s Dr Erik Denneman said provisional certification of a product by the panel appointed to assess its performance

meant the experts on the panel were confident the action of the product had been sufficiently demonstrated in a laboratory environment and was supported by historic field performance.

“Once provisional certification has been accredited, a product can carry the TIPES logo,” said Dr Denneman – a co-author of the guidelines covering the operation of TIPES. “Of course, that’s with the proviso that approval for the product can be withdrawn if subsequent field testing shows it doesn’t perform to expectations.

“Obviously, that’s not an outcome we would want to happen or expect given the evaluation undertaken in support of the provisional certification.

“The final stage in support of full certification involves an extensive field evaluation.

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 67

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“The duration of the field trial is determined by the assessment panel and will vary depending upon the product and field test requirements to support the product’s claims. In certain situations the field trial can be relatively short, while for others, it could take up to two years to provide the right level of confidence.”

Dr Denneman said although the majority of products being assessed were in the road construction sector, the TIPES scheme was structured to evaluate products in other areas.

“We can assess the potential of products in sectors such as drainage for roads and Intelligent Transport Systems – we have the capacity and expertise to assess a wider, more diverse range of products.”

Dr Denneman said all state road agencies had given their support to TIPES. He said the intention of the scheme was to provide confidence and to assist the agencies with independent and expert evaluation of products.

“We’ve also had positive discussions with industry bodies which fully support TIPES as a way of bringing more innovation into the market.”

Dr Denneman said: “It has been an interesting challenge working with applicants and the experts on product evaluation panels to develop a suitable testing regime for each product.

“As you would expect with innovative products each assessment is quite a learning process, for both sides. Careful selection of the review panel members and appropriate governance oversight provides confidence to all parties and a robustness demanded by road agencies.

“We are really appreciative of the input by panel members who are undertaking the work in addition to their fulltime employment.”

Dr Denneman said it was envisaged the TIPES scheme would be an on-going certification regime.

TIPES fulfils a need for an innovative independent national product evaluation

scheme. It is expected that with one product accredited, many more will follow.

The scheme provides confidence for both applicants and road agencies.

ARRB is now looking to expand the TIPES certification concept further to support road agencies with critical standard product. Such a scheme could provide suppliers a one-stop certification process for all road agencies.

Dr Denneman said certification of a product under TIPES could enhance its prospects of being accepted in the global market, but the product would still have to be assessed by the relevant international body.

“Just as we have a clause in our certification process that we will look at assessments undertaken by foreign entities, I’m sure that would apply to overseas bodies.

“The product has to be evaluated in the local context in terms of local materials and local suppliers who may or may not have the expertise of their counterparts in other jurisdictions.”

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68 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

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PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Leading the way Like many sectors the roads and transport infrastructure industry is facing increasing levels of competition. This coupled with seemingly constant change, the need to make decisions quickly and often with incomplete information and shortened lead times all serve to create complex work environments in which the challenges for leaders are magnified.

Unfortunately, evidence indicates that by and large Australian leaders are rated as not being up to these challenges, with leaders within the roads and transport infrastructure sector faring no better. This is worrying given there is clear evidence demonstrating the positive impact effective leadership can have on the productivity and performance of employees. Indeed, both business surveys and academic research show that where leaders are perceived as effective workers are more highly engaged, innovative and productive.

Clearly, if left unattended, the leadership skill deficit within the sector will continue to limit and impair the capacity of many companies to attain and maintain an enduring competitive edge.

There are a number of reasons for the current leadership skill deficit. Firstly the traditional leadership path using mentoring and gradually increasing responsibility in running larger project teams is heavily dependent upon opportunity. The perfect alignment of these opportunities to lead, and availability of talented engineers who are ready to lead rarely occurs in today’s lean corporate environment. Secondly, because there are fewer mid-level employees, less-experienced engineers are frequently stretched into leadership roles beyond what would typically be given to them. Combined with this the fact that road and transport infrastructure projects are increasingly complex, involving multidisciplinary teams, sophisticated problem solving and high levels of collaboration, all skills which traditionally are not the focus of engineering education and you have a perfect storm.

As a result many engineers are illprepared for the myriad of “people” issues and problems which they face when asked to lead projects or organisations. Unfortunately, this often means that individuals who were strong technical performers end up being sub-par managers. Not surprisingly, in turn this can result in dissatisfaction and a loss of personal confidence as these individuals struggle to optimise the teams or organisation they have been charged with leading. Indeed, it has been estimated that when engineers,

relatively inexperienced when it comes to leadership, are tasked to run their first team or project, nearly 80% fail in satisfying all of the project’s critical requirements, either missing on functionality, performance, quality, cost or other key objectives.

Organisations are often also reluctant to provide individuals with leadership training, viewing this as a cost to the business. This approach is short sighted and underestimates the powerful positive impact effective leaders can have on an organisation’s bottom line. Indeed, investing in the leadership development of employees can help to ensure these individuals are able to leverage their technical expertise whilst at the same time avoiding leadership mistakes. Leadership skills are clearly not only important in terms of organisational success. As engineers seek to advance their career they often come to realise that it is their skills as a leader, not just their technical skills, which sets them apart and determines their success.

The new Professional Certificate in Workplace Leadership at the University of Melbourne has been designed with this specifically in mind. The online course takes a deliberately practical approach and as part of its focus challenges participants to assess their own leadership style in order to better understand how to motivate both themselves and others to reach their full potential.

As part of this focus the course provides participants with the opportunity to design their own customised leadership development plan. Participants are also provided with tangible skills in strategic and systems thinking, complex problem solving, conflict resolution, networking and building impactful relationships.

The course also takes a deliberately flexible approach to learning to enable both those who have newly been appointed to leadership positions as well as those who already have leadership experience to benefit.

The certificate has the added advantage of also being wholly delivered online enabling students to pace their own learning and study at times that suit them, minimising their time away from work.

Overall, the evidence in relation to the positive impact of strong, effective leadership in organisations gaining competitive advantage in what is a complex and competitive market is clear.

Organisations within the roads and transport infrastructure sector that chose to ignore leadership development do so at their peril.

Prioritising engineers undertaking leadership development courses such as that offered by the University of Melbourne is crucial therefore in ensuring these individuals can successfully make the transition from technical, individual contributors to team leaders who are able to effectively manage and motivate others to deliver complex, multi-disciplinary projects.

Author: Dr Belinda Allen is a co-ordinator of the Professional Certificate in Workplace L e a d e r s h i p f o r t h e Ce n t re f o r Wo r k p l a ce Leadership at the University of Melbourne.

The University of Melbourne has launched i t s f i r st o n l i n e P ro fe ss i o n a l Ce r t i f i c a te i n Workplace Leadership to give emerging talent the knowledge and skills they need to become Australia’s next generation of business leaders.

T h e P ro fe ss i o n a l Ce r t i f i c a te i n Wo r k p l a ce Leadership is one of the few courses in Australia to support people in their early careers and the first to be delivered online. It provides students with the opportunity to connect with academics, their peers and industry.

More information about the new online P r o f e s s i o n a l C e r t i f i c a t e i n Wo r k p l a c e Leadership, which is available to people within Australia and overseas can be found on: https:// online.unimelb.edu.au/lp/workplace-leadership.

Expressions of interest to study the course can be made by emailing: study-online@unimelb. edu.au

June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 69

BRIDGES IN FOCUS

Preparing for New Bridgewater Bridge The Tasmanian Government has endorsed a report from Infrastructure Tasmania to seek Federal funding for a new four-lane Bridgewater Bridge.

State Minister for Infrastructure, Rene Hidding, said the bridge proposal would be the most important single transport infrastructure project in Tasmania since the Tasman Bridge was built in the 1960s.

“The current Bridgewater Bridge was built in the 1940s and requires replacement as it places height, mass and width restrictions on vehicles travelling on the Midland Highway, Tasmania’s key north-south road link and most important road freight corridor.

Artists impression of the planned Bridgewater Bridge. Image Courtesy: Tasmanian Department of State Growth - Transport

“The current bridge carries an average of 18,500 vehicles per day, bottle-necks traffic to two lanes and the lifting mechanism is wearing and subject to breakdown,” Mr Hidding said.

Rail access would be maintained via the existing bridge.

The new structure would be sited downriver of the existing bridge, on land already identified as suitable.

Minister Hidding said more than $100 million was made available for a new Bridgewater Bridge in the 2004 Federal Budget (80 percent of the estimated cost at the time) but the Labor State Government

later decided it was no longer a priority.

He said funding for the bridge was set aside for other road projects.

“The proposed new design is estimated to cost about $535 million, representing a saving of more than $200 million over the most recent designs, without compromising either the number of lanes or clearance height of 16 metres.

“Funding for the bridge will be sought through the next five-year round of the Federal Government’s Infrastructure Investment Program. If successful, work on the project is anticipated to start in 2019-20,” said Mr Hidding.

Easing congestion on Swan Street Bridge Melbourne’s Swan Street Bridge will be widened to cater for an additional lane and new pedestrian and cycling paths under a $30 million upgrade.

The upgrade will help ease congestion for motorists and provide a safer solution for cyclists and pedestrians attending major

70 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

events at the Melbourne and Olympic Park precinct.

The upgrade will include: • an additional lane in the eastbound direction on Swan Street Bridge and Olympic Boulevard – becoming five traffic lanes;

• two new separated pedestrian and bike paths on both sides of the bridge; and • a new pedestrian crossing on the Alexandra Avenue side of the bridge.

The upgrade would save motorists around five minutes during peak periods, by better managing traffic and reducing the disruption caused by current lane switching.

Up to 1,000 cyclists per hour travel through the precinct and up to 1,300 pedestrians per hour walk over the bridge after major events in Melbourne’s premier sports and entertainment precinct.

Community consultation for the urban design of the project will consider night time lighting, artwork and architectural features along the barriers separating cyclists and pedestrians from traffic.

Expressions of interest from experienced companies to undertake the upgrade opened on 18 May. Interested companies would be shortlisted prior to a formal tender process with a contract due to be awarded in late 2016 and construction underway by early 2017.

Two new bridges for NT’s Roper Highway Flood immunity works are underway on Roper Highway in the Northern Territory to construct two new bridges at the Wilton River and Roper River crossings.

In addition to construction of high level bridges over the two crossings, 7.3 kilometres of approach roads will be reconstructed, including a realigned section of the Roper Highway.

Northern Territory Minister for Transport, Peter Chandler, said the highway was a key road in the Northern Territory network, linking cattle stations to domestic and international markets, and providing access to the East Arnhem tourism region and the mineral rich Roper Gulf region.

“During the wet season, the crossings are prone to flooding, making the highway impassable for a significant portion of the year,” Mr Chandler said.

“The project will improve access to local communities, such as the Ngukurr and Numbulwar communities by reducing closure time at the crossings during the wet season.

“Traffic on the Roper Highway has increased at six per cent a year over the past decade and the flood immunity works will deliver the much needed infrastructure to benefit remote Indigenous communities, as well as help to build a prosperous economy.”

Sitzler Pty Ltd will manage delivery of the project and focus on increasing indigenous employment through the release of small works packages.

The Roper Highway project is a jointly funded project with the Australian Government contributing $32 million and the Northern Territory Government contributing $8 million.

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June 2016 | Highway Engineering Australia 71

BRIDGES IN FOCUS

Great Northern Highway bridge maintenance

‘New life’ for key Kimberley bridge

Work is underway on upgrades to four bridges in Western Australia’s Kimberley region.

Kimbuild Contracting Pty Ltd has been awarded a $1.55 million contract for roadworks and bridgeworks at several locations along the Great Northern Highway, between Fitzroy Crossing and Halls Creek.

An average of 349 vehicles per day use this section of Great Northern Highway, more than 27 per cent of them heavy vehicles.

The work involves specific maintenance on the following bridges: • No. 1165 located over Pinnacle Creek will be built with a reinforced concrete overlay and approach slabs; • No. 1159 located over Mosquito Creek; • No. 1172 located over Landrigan Creek; and • No. 1199 located over Berrangi Creek.

The work will improve the lifespan of the bridges and is designed to significantly reduce future maintenance costs.

It is expected to be completed by July 2016 and is being managed

by Main Roads Western Australia Kimberley Region.

Work will begin in July to restore the bridge over the Logue River on Great Northern Highway, in Western Australia’s Shire of Derby-West Kimberley.

Logue River Bridge is an eight-span concrete bridge built in 1970 and it is located about 100 kilometres east of the turn-off to Broome.

The refurbishment will involve demolishing the existing overlay and constructing a new reinforced, wider concrete deck and approach slabs. New guard railing will also be installed.

The upgrade will increase community safety and the overall lifespan of the structure, allowing the heavy haulage industry to continue to use the important freight route in the Kimberley.

Great Northern Highway west of the Logue River is used by about 800 vehicles per day – about 30 per cent of that traffic is comprised of heavy vehicles.

The project is being funded under the WA Government’s Bridge Safety Improvement Program and the contract for the $2.1 million refurbishment has been awarded to local construction company, Watpac Civil and Mining.

72 Highway Engineering Australia | June 2016

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