Beaches Link and Gore Hill Freeway Connection

I object to the Beaches Link tunnel for the following reasons:
1. Estimated construction of 6 years at a cost of a minimum $10 billion dollars to save a few minutes travel time before the next traffic bottle neck seems a ridiculous solution to the Northern Beaches traffic congestion issue. The only parties that will really benefit from the tunnel will be Transurban and the NSW State Government.
This project will have an adverse effect on a wide sector of the lower Northern Beaches and a detrimental effect on our local fauna and flora, create centralised pollution, both noise and air and will create traffic chaos by local road "rat runs" and the removal of "spoil" from the construction area by massive double semi trailers. A transport solution is required for the Northern Beaches that has the capacity move a mass of people efficiently to reduce cars on the road, and reduce carbon emissions. More cars are not the future solution.
2.It has been proven in various published studies that tunnels only provide short term relief to traffic congestion, and due to tolls, drivers will revert to the old route to avoid the tunnel.
3. This process seems to be being rushed through, and hasn't ever acknowledged the alternate viable transport options that would better suit access to the CBD from the Northern Beaches.
4. Traffic lights from access road to enter/exit Beaches Link tunnel. This design is just plain stupid! If you need to stop the flow of traffic heading south on the Burnt creek deviation wishing to bypass the tunnel, won't you just be creating the first of many traffic jams?
5. Unfiltered Smoke Stacks. The artist impression of the Smoke Stacks at North Balgowlah seem to be slightly out of scale seeing the information i have read sees the height of the stacks at minimum 25 metres. These will be an absolute eyesore to the community, but worse than that, will spew unfiltered emissions at a minimum in the area of up to 500 mtrs. So Balgowlah Boys High School, Seaforth Public School as well as North Balgowlah Public plus numerous early learning centres will be in the fallout zone for car emissions.

We don't need a rushed "band aid" solution that fits in with the TfNSW tunnel network. The Tunnel for additional car movement is the wrong solution and more "serious"consultation need to be had with the effected residents of the Northern Beaches before any project such as this moves any further forward.

I 100% object to the Beaches Link tunnel project on the basis that I think it will have over time little effect on helping Northern Beaches traffic movement, is a complete waste of tax payers money as well as having a catastrophic impact on our local environment.

I have to object to the dive site at Flat Rock Drive being used. Reading and seeing some more literature about it, I am not wanting the old asbestos and chemicals that has been buried under the ground being stirred up for this project, especially with all the dust/noise that will occur. There is spoil that will sit idle on the site and if there is a gust of wind, that will carry the contaminated spoil across to the houses, which I am at the top. I have 2 very young kids and we all know what the asbestos can do. I would rather have the route changed to NOT go through Northbridge and change the location of the dive site. The former dump site is contaminated and doesn't provide any benefits to the environment. Having the dive site at Flat Rock Drive will also severely affect the traffic in and out of the area with up to 500 vehicle movements per day.

For many reasons, too many to list. Here are a few; Cost, damage to the environment, the destruction of bush land, parts of the harbour and dams etc where wildlife currently reside. Unfiltered smoke stacks. No public transport alternatives were submitted. Potential damage to homes. Longevity of project. Toll mania (Gladys agrees). No attempt to make improvements that will lower the impact of our carbon footprint. Local residents have been ignored and big companies are being rewarded. There are less destructive ways to create jobs and help people to travel with ease. Another car toll tunnel is last century.

As a parent and resident I object to this project because of the pollution from the air vent that will placed at the top of the street that will result in lower house value and health hazard for my child

There is no consideration for filtering the smoke stacks. Australia is the only advanced economy who are building this type of infrastructure with no filtration of the stacks. I also am concerned with the impact to Ernest Street and access to my property (both during construction and upon completion). Finally, I do not believe that the EIS takes into account the changing way we travel and use vehicles (ie there is no/little public transport). This is such a backward project that poses health and safety risks to local residents of Cammeray and surrounding suburbs.

Please accept my strong objection to this project on several grounds:
1. You will most likely kill me and my family with asbestos or other poisons from the toxic dump site that you will be excavating next to my house
2. The digging and drilling will wreck my house and you and the government will say it's my fault just like you did with those other poor people above other tunnels
3. Our access to the harbor tunnel and the bridge will be made much more difficult than it is now
4. You will be killing various endangered species by destroying their habitat at Flat Rock
5. You have refused to say that you will restore the bushland and revive the species that you kill at Flat Rock
6. You have not adequately assessed the traffic impacts during or after the project - your estimates of improvements are inexplicably impossible to verify and you have not explained the way you calculated them... or in one case you used old data
7. There's no business case explaining who will benefit and by how much
8. So many other horrible things...

This might have been a good project in 1990 but now - esp post COVID - it's just a flawed concept. Please cancel this project asap.

Thanks,
Adrian

I am a resident of Northbridge but also of the Northern Beaches. There is no valid reason for this project. Yes the roads at the moment are congested but this project will only have a short term effect. Previous extensions of roadways encourage more cars and thus more pollution and in a short time, the advantages that come initially are no more. You only have to look at the M25 around London - or better known as the carpark. The only solution is a train from DeeWhy to Chatswood and improved train connections. The new B1 works well from the Northern Beaches too. Building a tunnel and "improving" the road connection is counter productive , will increase pollution.It is an outdated solution to a 21st century problem. All other major cities are reducing car transport into the city. Why is Sydney so far behind the times?


In addition the construction of the tunnel will have a long term effect on the ecology of the bushland where I live. We will lose countless trees and bushland which is the natural habitat of rare birds, echidnas, bandicoots and hundreds of other species that survived the bushfires last year. They will not be replaced or saved. My husband has a serious respiratory condition. We chose to live near Tunks Park and Flat Rock Gulley so that his breathing would not be adversely affected. Now it appears that if this project goes ahead, there could be noxious pollution stacks nearby - noise dust and air pollution. And for no valid reason

I am concerned about :
- Environmental impact the project will have on Northbridge local area
- The potential hazards to the health of locals due to the chemcial/asbestos exposure if Fern Tree Gully is used as a dumping ground during the project
- Reduction in property values
- Excessive costs of the project that many locals are not happy about

Significant contamination, ruins biodiversity, has negative ground impact, negative health implications, tolls costs and terrible traffic, climate dangers, poor transparency and better alternatives

The Cost and impact of this project on the environment are enormous.It will not help with traffic as the rest of the roads will be over congested. More options need to be considered instead of using public money for this. Too much pollution and years of disruption for people who need to go to the city to work.

I respectfully object to the tunnel passing underneath this area and the dive site being near many bush walking and park areas where residents and their children play around Flat Rock Drive.

Pyalla St at Flat Rock Drive use to be a former dump site for chemicals and asbestos and should never be used as it will awaken these previously dumped materials or even add more contaminated soil to the area where many residents surround the area with children playing in nearby parks (baseball field, basketball courts, playgrounds, sporting fields and walking tracks and the area is known for high winds which can blow contaminants into the atmosphere

The cost of the project is ridiculous considering recent events with COVID-19 and less workers requiring to travel into the city so the benefits of this project is not justified with the price.

The CBA for the project is weak. Unlikely to take cars off roads. Small initial travel time improvements then will see further traffic volumes. Should be promoting further public transport links, examine options over the Roseville bridge, consider how to support more liveable communities with jobs and supports within a 15 minute radius. Environmental impacts too high. Relocation of threatened species not enough. Already habitat destruction with the NB hospital works. Also dredging impacts and emissions on local schools and communities.

I have a baby and young child and I am concerned for their health as well as our community’s health with the planned construction so close to our home. The dive site is proposed for the bottom of the hill of Pyalla Street at Flat Rock Drive and this was a former dump site for chemicals/asbestos.
I urge the Government to halt the project or at the least relocate the proposed construction and tunnel location.

As a community member and local citizen I am deeply concerned about the impact that this project will have on the area.
The project will lead to massive destruction of local bushland, public amenities (mountain bike/running trials) and aboriginal cultural sites (Wakehurst Parkway aboriginal engravings)
I am concerned about the long term health consequences to my children due to the planned nearby unfiltered exhaust stacks
It seems that the community would receive very little benefit from this project as it offers only a modest improvement in travel time to the city.
I believe that the state and local area would be much better served by a public transport project such as a rail link to the northern beaches

The environmental impacts of this project are too devastating:
1: We need to protect what little natural environments we have left, not cut them down. (For example, the bushland around Manly Dam which is also home to a number of threatened species.)
2. We need to be developing other transport options--not encouraging more cars on our roads.
3. The tunnel will pump unfiltered pollution out into the air.

This project shows a lack in environmental consolidation and conservation by the NSW government which saddens me as I hope the NSW government could start to become a staple for other companies and states about what environmental consolidation looks like in a urban context. This environmental impact statement shouldn’t have suggested they took the environment into account for any plan for the project. Wildlife in the Northern Beaches is already in limited supply and on the brink of collapse and this project will remove another 15 hectares of native forest and build toxic outlets for smoke right in the middle of these last urban green spaces for wildlife to survive. Wildlife is not thriving in any space in Sydney, it is surviving due to the continual lack of environmental thought and planning on a way that utilises current infrastructure instead of one that greats more. I can’t believe this project is putting so much of our beautiful wildlife at risk for a project that will make a trip only 5 minutes quicker then it already is. I really hope this doesn’t get approved but if it does I hope the NSW government and its planners remember every endangered and vulnerable species they have just pushed further to extinction and horrific example they are setting to future generations on the respect and care we must show to our wildlife in an urban context.

I am writing to vocalise my objection to the proposed Northern Beach Tunnel project. My objection is based on a variety of impacts that have come to light in the recently released EIS report as well as the fact that the project has not taken into account considerable shifts in societies movements post covid. No longer are city workers constrained to traditional 9-5 routines, nor to the requirement to be in the CBD on a daily basis. If projections were recalculated with this anticipated ongoing trend, viable impact on commute times and congestion would presumably be decreased. Similarly, if the government could commit to the improvement of public transport systems and options (rather than the recent appalling decrease in the number of services, forcing people onto the roads in cars) there would be even less need for expensive single-commuter options like the tunnel.

Beyond the overarching need for a reassessment of the project as a whole - the following key points are of considerable concern as a new resident to the region, especially given the questionable benefit of the project:
- Ongoing and direct impact of considerable levels of drilling, vibrations and noise. The levels outlined in the EIS are frankly not acceptable for up to 3,000 residences to endure for a period of 5+ years. I have genuine concerns over the impact on my families comfort, ability to sleep, and on the integrity of my house if levels of disruption are as bad as could be potentially projected... not to mention the disruption to access routes, truck and transport noise and dust which is concerning as a parent of a young child

- The location of an unfiltered exhaust stack in extremely close proximity to residential areas, schools and community amenities. Part of the appeal and beauty of this area of Sydney is due to its nature and clear air. This will be significantly impacted with the exhaust fumes and whilst placing them within the proposed recreational zones limits direct impacts on residences, it makes absolutely no sense that any parent or individual would willingly participate in sports in its direct vicinity.

- Impact to vegetations and wildlife as a result of removal of trees, widening of the Burnt Bridge Deviation road. Again this area of Sydney has a natural beauty that is motivation for many residents to be here. We value our local flora and fauna and the proposed removal of hundreds of trees, the dislocation of hundreds of wildlife is devastating to consider.

I would implore the government to reconsider the strategy and focus on looking at sustainable solutions that improved public transport options, investments into electric solutions, retention of wildlife and development of infrastructure that would improve the ability for individuals to work and live within their communities without the previous need to commute to CBD/other locations. I have absolutely no doubt that for a fraction of the capital, environmental impact and impact on residents of this area a positive solution could be designed and still have a positive impact on the local and state economy.

As a parent of children at Cammeray Public School, I strongly object to this tunnel project, especially the following impacts:
* our children who live in Naremburn need to cross Brook St to get to their local primary school, which will now have heavy traffic and large trucks. This is unsafe and extremely concerning and I object strongly to the use of brook street as a construction corridor. Should the project go ahead you MUST construct a pedestrian footbridge over Brook Street (near Merremburn St) or similar underground walkway so we can ensure the safety of our children.

* the pollution levels at Cammeray Public school will be increased dramatically and this is very concerning for all developing lungs, but especially the children with asthma. I object strongly to the spreading of pollution near our children. If the project goes ahead you MUST install air conditioning and air filtration in all spaces at the school.

* i object that residents of Naremburn will lose access to the harbour tunnel via Brook St, which will significantly disadvantage us (for no gain as we can't even access the proposed tunnels) and add travel time. We need to retain access to the harbour tunnel.

* i object that although a large number of children play tennis at the cammeray tennis club, however this area will now be overrun will traffic, dust, construction etc. We need to be encouraging children into physical activity, not making it more unpleasant for them.

* disturbing the contaminated tip site at flat rock is very concerning. I object to digging up this site and construction teams being able to house spoil/dirt outside the sheds where they can easily spread around the community. I object to the contamination that will run down to tunks park where our children play sport.

* I object to the noise and vibration impacts that will impact my quality of life living in naremburn. We are a peaceful community that should not be subjected to this project where we receive absolutely zero gain.

I object to the tunnels on the basis that:
We don't need yet another Toll Road
The tunnel will save no time for motoriss, as the only entry points are via Artarmon and Berry St North Sydney
It will create rat runs through local streets for Toll avoidance (as has happened in the Inner West)
Tunnels will not solve local traffic congestion but tunnels WILL put more cars on the road
Tunnels will not achieve the intended goal of main road congestion (only 10% reduction in short term on Military Rd)
Tunnels have been confirmed as a capacity solution not a congestion solution – (for freight and through traffic)
There is no dedicated bus lane for in tunnels so it is not a public transport solution – (express buses aren’t express if they are going at the same speed as cars)
The tunnel route has no ability to be converted to a rail-line as the gradients are too steep

I REQUEST:
A release the business case for the Beaches Link and Gore Hill Freeway connection that has never been made public. Tax-paeyers deserve to know whether the Beaches Link is the most efficient, cost effective infrastructure option for reducing congestion to and from the Northern Beaches.
Prior to Covid TfNSW data showed the daily average traffic across the Spit Bridge has been decreasing over the last 4 years. During the same period the traffic on Mona Vale Road through to Macquarie Park has been increasing. The Beaches Link case is based on old data. Evidence shows LESS people are travelling to and from the city from the Northern Beaches. We need to see data on traffic flows to and from the Northern Beaches collected after 2016. Data is needed to be collected on the number of Northern Beaches residents who work in area and how many work from home.
Tunnels will definitely put more cars on the roads and move the traffic congestion further down the road.
The premise of these projects (as demonstrated in the Westconnex) is to see local roads return to local communities.
Evidence has shown that expensive toll roads creates traffic congestion on local streets as motorists avoid paying the tolls. This is currently the case in Leichhardt, Haberfield, Lilyfield, Ashfield.
The tunnel will subject residents, school children and motorists in Northbridge, Willoughby, Artarmon, Crows Nest, Cammeray, Naremburn, and the lower north shore to 5 years of the construction which will include noise, pollution and traffic congestion as trucks move dive site spoil out of the area. The cumulative impact of the development of the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade will extend construction time across the area for up to 10 years.