The next stage of the Southern Feeder Road will ease traffic congestion on Anson Street and transform Orange's transport links, politicians say.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Orange City councillors, federal and state politicians and Transport for NSW staff were all present to turn the first sod at the corner of Shiralee Road and Park Road on Thursday, April 13.
Stage four of the $14.7 million project is a combination of federal, state and local government funding and is expected to be completed in 12 months, weather permitting.
It will link the existing Southern Feeder Road to Shiralee Road, reducing the need to use Anson Street as an arterial road.
Mayor Jason Hamling said it was "significant" to see work finally start after being conceived by previous councils and funded by governments from both sides of politics.
"It's significant because it's going to relieve some of the traffic that's banked up in town but the other significant thing is that three tiers of government have come together here to get this next stage going," Cr Hamling said.
"If you drive up Anson Street in the morning and afternoon there are three schools so there's a lot of traffic for pickup and drop off, especially from buses.
"This will take some of the traffic out of that where residents can come across, not go up Anson Street, and use Woodward Street.
"This is the next part of the puzzle and I have to commend former councils and councillors for the hard work they did to get us to this stage."
"This time next year we should see it open, you'll see a roundabout here [corner of Park and Shiralee Roads], a new road to the railway and a new connection to Anson Street."
Member for Calare Andrew Gee labelled the next stage "vital" for Orange and said it was urgent heavy traffic was diverted from the three school zones on Anson Street, a situation he said was "dangerous."
"There's a lot to like about this project," Mr Gee said.
"As someone who has an office in Anson Street I know how congested it gets and it can be dangerous with all those students crossing roads. It's important to get traffic off that thoroughfare.
"This is a landmark day for Orange and also for this project. It brings to fruition the next stage of the Southern Feeder Road which is a huge engineering project but it's vital to the future of Orange.
"It looks to the future and sets Orange up for future growth, eases congestion and makes local roads safer by getting [traffic] off those smaller roads."
Member for Orange Phil Donato echoed his federal counterpart and said it was pleasing to see the next stage get underway.
"This project has been a long time coming and many years in the making," he said.
"It's great to see it progress stage by stage.
"Anyone who drives up that road in the morning and afternoon can appreciate how busy it is and potentially dangerous it is."
Reading this on mobile web? Download our news app. It's faster, easier to read and we'll send you alerts for breaking news as it happens. Download in the Apple Store or Google Play.
