Beaches Link and Gore Hill Freeway Connection

This project does not need to go ahead and is way out of touch with the current needs of the community.

I object to the Beaches Link Project for the following reasons:
1. Our streets have not been built to handle large trucks moving up and down them, moving earth and rocks etc for five and a half days a week for years. These are just suburban streets and even Military Road is just coping with the traffic that currently travels along it.
The increased noise is a concern but so is the potential for an accident with a child walking to school, an elderly person attempting to cross the road or a car backing out of it's driveway.
I have lived my home for 50 years and have experienced the difficulty of congestion on these roads without the continuous flow of trucks using them.
2. I am also concerned with the ecological impact in particular the impact on the Burnt Bridge Creek. Specifically I am concerned with the implications on flora and fauna such as the protected flying foxes.

I object to the project

Please find attached my objections to the planned Beaches Link.
Janet Crawford

I strongly object to the project.
The concerns of the local community regarding key issues such as traffic, air pollution and environmental damage have not been adequately addressed. Further, the purported time savings for travel are questionable and based on unrealistic assumptions. In any event, the multi-billion dollar tax bill is clearly excessive compared to the (questionable) marginal benefits that have been put forward.

As a resident just 300m from the ventilation outlets, who plays croquet at the croquet club and walks his granddaughter to and from Anzac Park School I object to the proposed project.

Anzac Park School is now fully operational which has significantly increased pedestrian traffic in Ernest St and surrounding streets. The EIS does not appear to have the correct pedestrian data for Ernest St. There would be at least 150 children walking along Ernest St to and from Anzac Park Public School each day.

There needs to be an analysis of options for local streets as people use alternative routes to access the harbour bridge. Anzac Park Public School drop off and pick up causes major traffic congestion in the morning and afternoon. At these times Ernest St cannot take extra traffic. There is also concern for all the streets in Cremorne and Neutral Bay in particular Merlin St, Lytton St, Moodie St, Park Ave, Sutherland St, Grasmere Rd, Ben Boyd Rd, Grafton St, Amherst St and Cammeray Rd. These roads cannot take extra traffic.

Other issues are:

Construction

• Street Parking needs to be preserved as this is a recreational area for local residents. Workers need to have onsite parking or follow existing parking restrictions. North Sydney Council should have funds to monitor parking on a daily basis
• Truck movements need to be monitored and have strong penalties against the lead contractor should they not be followed. They should not be able to pass the problem on to the individual subcontracted truck driver
• All environmental controls during construction should not be weakened from the standard set in the EIS. There should be strong enforcement and real time publishing of data.
• Tunnel facilities should be underground as far as feasible – at least built into the hill. Car parking should also be underground There should be an offset for the loss of three hectares of green space


Operational
• Ongoing operation requirements should not be weakened during contract negotiation and have strong enforcement
• All data should be available on line in real time
• There needs to be a solution to the treatment of water runoff from the motorway
• Tunnel should not be opened until all environmental requirements are met including motorway water management

Please see attached document containing my objections to the project.

I object to the loss of nature, in particular Burnt Bay Creek which provides a safe, and beautiful pathway for our children. Nature on our doorstop outweighs the need for putting more traffic on the road. Another solution must be found.
Do not destroy nature- our environment is paramount to supporting sustainability.

Whilst supporting the project our Club is concerned about the impact construction will have on our neighbouring sailing clubs as per the attached submission. We are also concerned about the lack of notification about disruption to local waterways . No one from the NSW Government has made direct contact to any specifically affected organisations that use the waterways of Middle Harbour.

I object to the Project for the following reasons:
1. We don't need or want a tunnel. Saving 7 minutes off a commute is minimal and irrelevant. Provide better public transport to get cars off roads. The local 172X bus route has just replaced the 168 and 169 routes, adding an extra 15 minutes to the daily commute.
2. Traffic in local streets will be significantly impacted by the construction and implementation phase.
3. Noise and Vibrarion will cause lical residents to no longer have the enjoyment of their homes, loss of property value and damage to property.
4. Air pollution from the unfiltered stacks will have serious health impacts on the children and elderly who go to school, engage in outdoor activities and live in the local area. In particular the stack in Balgowlah is located in a valley and will not benefit from adequate wind movement to disperse the pollutants and dilute them. The heavy particulate matter, NO and heavy metals will be unable to mix and fallout at maximum concentrations within high residential population between 200 - 1.2k of the stack. The low level temperature inversion in the balgowlah area is above stack height and will prevent the plum of emissiona feom riaing and will force them to return unmixed to the ground.
5. Visual impact - the stack is very ugly and cause visual impact to reaidents and reduce property value.
6.

I am concerned about the effect of the project on wildlife along Wakehurst Parkway during construction of the widening of the road and when complete.
There has been an increase in larger animals such as Swamp Wallabies being killed along the current Wakehurst Parkway close to Garigal National Park which has happened since the changes made to Warringah Road during the building of the NB Hospital. I believe as a wildlife carer there will be more wildlife killed on the Wakehurst Parkway due to noise, lack of fauna exclusion fencing and before any over or underpasses are completed.
Many animals will be disorientated by the ongoing loud noises of heavy machinery and the bulldozing of many many trees which are habitat for mammals, birds and monotremes eg exhidnas plus reptiles eg goannas and snakes.
It is imperative that there are trained wildlife ‘spotters’ employed on the sites during the long building process to ensure any animals are protected and if required rescued and relocated or taken into care.

I am very concerned about the many years of high impact construction work - on water quality and wildlife in the harbour, on biodiversity and wildlife in Flat Rock Gully construction site, and the noise, vibration and traffic impacts on the residents of Northbridge. There is no benefit to Northbridge from the project, only significant burden, and I have not seen any convincing business case for the project as a whole - it seems to be development for development's sake. We need to be focussing on getting traffic off our roads through decentralisation of facilities and improved public transport, not facilitating more traffic by building more roads. The money, inconvenience and cost to the environment does not match the dubious business case.

I strenuously object to the Beaches Link Tunnel on the grounds that it is based on flawed perceived benefits.
1) Travel Times. The future forecast time savings are highly unlikely to materialise. At present a 56 minute time saving from Dee Why to the airport in peak hour would represent a travel time of less than 18 minutes. Outside of peak hour the travel time would be around 8 minutes to cover the 27 km to the airport. These figures use the State Governments Trip Planner as a source. The projected time savings are clearly based on the assumption that current traffic congestion will continue to grow at the rate experienced over the previous decade or so. The figures do not allow for improvements in public transport, the increase in people working from home, the decline in demand for city centric offices or the rise of alternative means of transport eg cycling, individual personal transport. The same argument can be applied to the other projected time savings ie Balgowlah to CBD and Frenchs Forest to Rozelle. The time saving from Manly to Macquarie Park largely reflects the existing lack of concentric public transport links which has been a failure of transport planning across the network for generations. Traffic in the new tunnel will increase to the point where time savings are no longer occurring as has happened with every other motorway built to date. Just ask the commuters on the M2, M5 or any other tollway.
2) The projections for reduced traffic. These traffic reductions can be achieved by improved public transport, increasing access to transport for school children so that parents do not have to drive them to and from school (the current restrictions have been in place for decades and no longer reflect the needs of children/parents in terms of safety or accessibility). Indeed the 10% reduction in Military Road traffic is already evident in school holidays!
3) While the promise of 5 km of new cycle ways/paths is welcome it would appear to be nothing more than a public relations exercise given the multi billion dollar price tag of the project.
4) The destruction of Balgowlah Golf Course. This iconic facility is 90 years old and is used extensively from daylight to dusk by large numbers of people, something which few other parks can lay claim to. Indeed in my observations, most urban parkland areas are under used, while purpose built facilities such as golf course are busy.
5) I find it ludicrous that the Business Case for this and other major and minor projects are not made public. The argument that releasing the Business Case would jeopardise the integrity of the procurement process is simply saying that the Government is not prepared to allow public scrutiny of its business dealings. An open and fair tender process, subject to the normal checks and balances of the democratic system would at least give the tax paying public some assurance that the Beaches Link does indeed represent value for money for the people of NSW. The government’s record to date with major projects such as the Sydney Light Rail, the Football Stadium, the Powerhouse fiasco and the destruction of Parramatta pool do little to engender faith in the Government to bring this project in on time and under budget, thereby committing residents and commuters to years of pain during construction.
6) Tolls. The cost of commuting in Sydney is already amongst the most expensive in the world. Another toll road/tunnel which I suspect commuters will be funneled into, will be yet another financial burden, unless of course a rebate scheme is introduced to prevent political backlash; at the same time largely negating any profitability for the people of NSW.
7) The Northern Beaches area does deserve better transport links to the rest of the Sydney area. Rail links stretching from Newport to Chatswood and via Manly to the city with an interchange at Dee Why or Mona Vale would be the ultimate long term solution. Building more roads based on a tolling system merely benefits construction companies, toll road operators and developers and provides only short term relief. The Northern Beaches and indeed all of greater Sydney deserves better from our elected representatives.

Regards Peter Cooper-Southam
Frenchs Forest

letter attached.

I support the project but feel the exit & entry for people using Sydney Road is far too complicated and costly. A simpler solution would be to have the exit & entry where the Tunnel will pass under Sydney Road [near the Manly Road/Sydney Road intersection]. Having the exit/entry near Maretimo Street with traffic lights will cause too many issues for local traffic, residents and businesses.

My husband , Christopher Lee and I are making this submission partly to raise concerns about the impact on his mother's property at 95 Seaforth Crescent Seaforth. The property is located on the Bluff area of Seaforth and we believe that the noise from the works will be very disruptive and it seems unlikely that anyone will be able to live in the house during the construction period. We base this assessment on the information provided on P86 of the EIS. We want to ensure that adequate compensation is available if this turns out to be the case. It is distressing to think that no one will be able to live at this property that has been in the family since 1961.
We are also concerned about the loss of access to the pontoon and ramp that is attached to 95 Seaforth Crescent Seaforth. A considerable fee is paid to lease this area from RMS and we would like to know what compensation will be provided, firstly for lack of access and secondly for the fees due during the period that it cannot be used. Another area of concern for us is that we live at 165 Seaforth Crescent and take our boat that is moored in Powder hulk bay ,out through the Spit Bridge every week to race on Sydney Harbour. It looks like this access will also be restricted and we are unhappy about that situation as well.
The Lee family have been members of NSC since the 1960s . Although we are not currently members of that club, we have read the concerns raised by that club and fully support the points raised in their submission . It is a club that provides opportunities for young people to learn to sail and be part of a community. The adults who race there would be disadvantaged if the restrictions to their activities go ahead as outlined in the EIS.
I know that many other people and organisations will raise similar concerns and I appreciate that there is a way for our issues to be taken into account.
Regards, Rachel Lee

I am opposed to this project. Below are my numerous concerns in relation to the proposed project.
The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) fails to accurately present the environmental impacts and in some cases misrepresents these. Significant further work on prevention and mitigation needs to be done and demonstrated in a fully costed business case before a sound decision can be made in relation to this project proceeding.

Significant concerns include;

1. Inadequate analysis of increased traffic on local roads, in particular approaching the link road in Balgowlah and associated impacts on residents and local schools during construction and operation.
2. Unfiltered ventilation outlets are a major concern. World class filtration needs to be part of the project
3. The lack of dedicated public transport lanes in the tunnel.
4. Balgowlah and associated impacts on residents and local schools
5. The added congestion of roads around tunnel entrances including Manly Vale/ Balgowlah during construction needs to be made clear in the business case as local congestion will significantly increase directly due to the tunnel.
6. ‘Rat runs’ along suburban streets needs to be avoided
7. Impact on mountain biking and walking trails and recreational corridors
8. Protection of flora and fauna in Manly Dam and Garigal National Park
9. Loss of water flow in Burnt Bridge Creek and downstream impacts on Queenscliff Lagoon and local ecosystems
10. The identification of biodiversity impacts in surrounding areas to the project area
And concerns mainly during construction phase
11. Truck movements removing soil from tunnelling site and impacts on communities during construction
12. Contractor parking and impact on residential streets during construction
13. Inadequate water quality controls
14. The movement of contaminated sediment in Middle Harbour
15. Estimated greenhouse gas emissions for all stages of the project, the sustainability targets for all stages of the project and how these will be achieved

Peter McGee

We object to the Beaches Link and Gore Hill Freeway Connection in its entirity for the numerous reasons outlined in the numerous community submissions already made. Obviously the goal is just to wear all who protest down so that the project slips through whilst 'appearing to listen to those who disagree' - even the experts!
We are particuarly concerned for the following reasons:
suitability of the site and the many environmental safety issues particularly the unfiltered stacks
lack of support for the project (by all parties) and the
cost of using the connection means that avoiding the connection will result in traffic avoiding tolls causing even greater conjestion rendering the connection a total waste of time and money
using our pristine area as a dumping ground after rehabiliting the area - a total waste of rate payers monies to rehabilitate and maintain the area just to have it destroyed to become a dump again! very worried about the ramifcations of disturbing the land that had already been covered due to the content in the tip!
total chaos with increased traffic in an already conjested area
if anyone has travelled along Flat Rock Drive - almost now at any time of the day - you will experience extreme traffic conjestion. Try also travelling from Naremburn to Cammeray around school time... suggest you avoid it!
Finally this has been a very challenging year for small businesses and this conjestion will simply make it impossible for customers to visit and subseqently businesses will struggle to retain customers. We live in the area which will be effected and we have a business in the area which will be effected. We cannot understand how this is proceeding considering the many many submissions made regarding safety and environment concerns alone.

I object to the extensive environmental and community impacts that the current plans have. This includes but is not limited to:
Negative Environmental Impact:
1)Potential destruction of Burnt Bridge Creek and surrounds (eg bushland, wildlife etc) due to a possible 96% reduction in water flow
2) Pollution of Manly Dam Reserve where many family enjoy recreational activities
3) Movement of contaminated sediment to Clontarf and Middle Harbour - the sediment curtain proposed will not fully prevent this
4) Discharge of 428,000 L per day of waste water into Queenscliff Lagoon / Beach
Negative Community Impact and Health Threats:
1) The use of unfiltered smoke stacks that will be placed close to multiple schools, ovals and homes. While you claim the pollution will be within Aust standards, this is far from best practice and will pollute the area. Medical experts state that the future impact on the health of the community cannot be predicted and therefore is a health risk. This is a disgrace. If stacks cannot be filtered for cost reasons, then quite simply you cannot afford to build this tunnel.
2) Exposure to significant levels of noise, vibrations and dust incl 24 / 7 tunnelling (over 4000 homes subjected to excessive noise)
3) Significant traffic congestion including: Over 3000 vehicles per day across all sites,1690 per day at the Balgowlah Golf Course site alone
Equating to 1.5 heavy vehicles every minute or 4.5 vehicles (total) every minute
4) Rat run traffic through the suburb and passed Balgowlah North Public Schools as commuters try to avoid the congestion around the constructions sites. This provides an obvious threat to the safety of our children.
The plans for this tunnel need to be slowed down so the due diligence can be done to ensure it is done in the right way. ie in a way that is safe for residents of Balgowlah / North Balgowlah and Seaforth and in a way that will not destroy our local environment. To be rushing through plans that pose a health risk to residents and will destroy much of the local environment is completely unacceptable.

The residents along Serpentine Crescent have been clearly not considered or consulted when it come to lighting and noise both during constitution and once the project has been completed. My view, as a Serpentine Crescent resident, there should be completion of the noise wall gap at Burnt Bridge Creek and Burnt Bride Creek Deviation and the residences along Burnt Bridge Creek. Also the existing noise wall that parallels Serpentine Crescent along Burnt Bridge Creek Deviation height should be increase PRIOR to tunneling and major works being commenced.