By Charlotte Wooldridge | posted on May 8, 2020
MAIN Roads is fast-tracking the tendering process for a number of large-scale road projects, including Albany Ring Road.
The project has taken 22 years of planning and lots of discussion, with construction of the next stage of the $175 million project, from Albany Highway to Lancaster Road, now anticipated to begin in the third quarter of the year.
A spokesperson for Main Roads said the consortia for the project is yet to be announced.
“A preferred proponent for design and construction of the Albany Ring Road is on track to be announced in July 2020,” they said.
“Concurrently, we will ask our contractor to prepare detailed designs for the remaining sections of the project from Lancaster Road through to Princess Royal Drive.
“This will allow construction to start as soon as possible after securing statutory approvals and acquiring the necessary land.”
Director of Southern Haulage Chris Pavlovich said he’s glad the project will be underway in the next few months.
“It’s an excellent piece of infrastructure for the transport industry and for everybody really, especially from the Albany Highway into the city centre, so the sooner the better,” he said.
“At present we’ve also got to go past schools and cinemas and through roundabouts, so we’ll have an interruption-free path all the way from the paddock to the port which will be great.”
Mr Pavlovich said that he hopes the safety of long-haul drivers is taken into consideration with the next stages of designs for the construction of Albany Ring Road.
“We hope that they also include road train assembly areas for trucks from Perth to put back up and dismantle again, and potential for a truck stop for drivers who are coming from a long way away to give them somewhere to rest as part of the next stage of the planning process,” he said.
