Shortlisted builders announced for WA Mitchell Fwy Southbound project

As part of the upgrade on Mitchell Freeway southbound in Western Australia, Smart Freeways technology will soon be rolled out across the route following the announcement of three shortlisted consortia to deliver the project. 

The three consortia shortlisted invited to submit detailed design and construction proposals include: 

• CPB, GHD, UGL and SAGE 
• Intelligent Freeways Alliance – comprised of NRW, Lendlease Services and WSP 
• SmartWays Alliance – comprised of BMD, Ventia and Arup 

“The $140 million Smart Freeway program will address congestion and bottlenecks to improve journey reliability and provide congestion relief to more than 50,000 southbound motorists each day. 

“As Perth continues to develop and grow, this innovative technology is the most efficient solution to manage the resulting congestion without continually widening the road – meaning we will get drivers home sooner and safer with the least disruption to communities in the area,” Federal Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts Paul Fletcher said. 

The Smart Freeways project will involve the delivery of coordinated ramp signals at seven freeway entry ramps from Reid Highway to Vincent Street to ensure vehicles enter the freeway safely and efficiently while bypassing start-stop conditions at known pinch points. 

Smart Freeway infrastructure will also be installed closer to the city. This includes lane use management technology that displays open and closed traffic lanes for incident management, which unlocks additional capacity as well as allow for traffic to be managed in real time. 

In addition, the project is expected to provide variable speed limits to improve traffic flow and safety through adjustments based on traffic volumes and conditions at the same time dynamic message signs over the freeway lanes will display information on road conditions ahead. 

Project route (source: Main Roads WA)

Other works under this stage of the Mitchell Freeway Southbound Upgrade include installation of other smart technology such as CCTV, Vehicle Detectors, Automatic Incident Detection, Stopped Vehicle Detection at emergency bays, and upgrades to the existing Traffic Control Systems Network to future-proof the road network’s smart operation. 

Smart Freeway technology will also be delivered as part of the Mitchell Freeway Southbound Upgrade between Hodges Drive and Hepburn Avenue. This will include the delivery of coordinated ramp signals at nine entry ramps from Hester Avenue to Warwick Road. 

The $140 million Smart Freeway Mitchell Southbound program is jointly funded by the Australia and Western Australian Governments on a 50:50 basis. 

Once works are completed, the more than 28,000 vehicles that travel through this corridor will save up to seven minutes in travel time along the Hodges Drive to Vincent Street section of the freeway during the morning peak. 

This multi-million-dollar project is expected to support over 1,000 direct and indirect jobs during its delivery phase. 

“We're now rolling this technology out along the Mitchell Freeway Southbound, which when complete, will save 28,000 drivers up to seven minutes on their daily morning commute. 

“This forms part of a suite of transport improvements for our rapidly growing northern suburbs, enabling more jobs for local workers and businesses, with 1,000 direct and indirect jobs expected to be created over the life of the Smart Freeway Mitchell southbound projects,” Transport Minister Rita Saffioti said. 

The contract for the delivery of the Smart Freeway Mitchell Southbound program is expected to be awarded by late 2021 and construction to begin by early 2022. 

Source: Government of Western Australia – Media Statements; Main Roads WA (1, 2)