Ryde Hospital Redevelopment Stage 2

I've read as much as I can take in and satisfied that Denistone House and the Stables will be preserved.
My suggestion (and this could be outside the scope of works) is that the pathway from Ryedale Rd to the hospital through the Bluegum Forest should be repaired and redesigned.
There are a number of reasons of this.
1. It is in a very poor state of repair
2. It is a significant pedestrian access to the hospital from the now upgraded Denistone Station.
If it was made more user friendly it could alleviate parking problems around the hospital as more people could access the hospital via public transport, seeing that there are now lifts installed on the station.
The current path is very steep and I thought that a tiered elevated walkway ending with a lift to take pedestrians to the hospital grounds might encourage more people to come by train.
I realise this might have to be a JV with Ryde Council and It would be very expensive but the current path is certainly no incentive for people to catch the train to the hospital
I'll leave that thought with you and should any representative of the hospital upgrade wish to speak with me I'm only too happy to do so.

Ryde Hospital Redevelopment Stage 2 (SSD-58210458) Submission
To Whom it May Concern,
I have read the various reports and documentation provided and wish to make a comment on the Transport Report provided by Stantec (“the Report”).
The Report acknowledges that Ryedale Rd has a “steep decline” south of Fifth Avenue with “reduced sight distance at the crest of the hill” near Fifth Avenue. It also states the recommended Safe Intersection Sight Distance based on driver reaction time of 2.0 seconds travelling at 40kph is 97 metres., which is about the length of six house frontages! It would be even worse in a downhill motion and if motorists travel faster than 40kph.
Needless to say this presents a dangerous situation and to make matters worse there is the intersection with Fifth Avenue right at the crest of the hill.
My relatives live at 54 Ryedale Rd which is just one house south of this intersection. Waiting for upcoming traffic to pass before turning into their driveway causes a degree of anxiety as we might be rear-ended by a vehicle coming over the crest of the hill at speed. Equally, reversing out of their driveway has always been dangerous as you never can see if there is a speeding southbound vehicle coming over the crest of the hill to take you out. For this reason when reversing we always try to make a hasty retreat when reversing out of the driveway, however some of the traffic measures spoken about in the Report will only make this situation more dangerous.
Up until now vehicles seldom park on the eastern side of Ryedale Road next to the Blue Gum High Forest so it’s possible to reverse out with just a standard one point turn. Once vehicles do park there, combined with vehicles parked next to the driveway, it will be impossible to exit the driveway without having to make a two or three point turn to avoid the parked cars. The time it takes to do this leaves you vulnerable to a collision with a speeding southbound vehicle coming over the crest of the hill.
I’m not a traffic management specialist but I do know how dangerous living in Ryedale Rd is going to be during both the construction and operating periods. I would ask that you consider the following mitigation measure:
• Install a signposted traffic calming measure to slow down southbound traffic at the crest of the hill to improve safety.
This will slow the southbound traffic at the crest of the hill and therefore provide a line of sight for drivers so that they can stop suddenly if a vehicle is entering or leaving a driveway below. It may also enable vehicles to maintain the proposed speed limit of 40kph down the steep decline towards Florence Avenue.
I also ask if you could do a site visit as looking at the plan does not demonstrate the inherent traffic dangers on this part of Ryedale Rd.
Finally, I have noticed on the Environmental Impact Statement prepared by Ethos Urban (Landscape Section 3.8, figure 26) that there are plans for “Community Heart – drop off and visual link to bush and Parramatta River”. I tried to find more detail about this but was unsuccessful. Does this mean that there will be a vehicle drop off section on Ryedale Rd just below the crest of the hill? If so, then this should be noted in addition to my comments above.
As you are responsible for the road safety associated with the Ryde Hospital Redevelopment I have made these comments because I feel it is important that you are fully aware of the traffic situation in this part of Ryedale Road.

To whom it may concern,

I am writing on behalf of my relatives who live on Ryedale Road, close to the Ryde Hospital redevelopment site. While we agree there is a need for a hospital upgrade, we are concerned with the proposed redevelopment plan as it demonstrates a lack of understanding and consideration of the impact on the local environment and community.

Our concerns lie in two key areas as outlined below:

1. The proposed stormwater drainage
After reviewing the civil engineering report that refers to the proposed drainage for the new site, we are concerned about the loud and constant noise of the water that will flow into the drain on Ryedale Road. According to the report, there are two catchment areas and the South catchment (the much larger of the two) will discharge into a drain on Ryedale Road, which is directly opposite my relatives’ home.
The issue is the loud and intrusive noise caused by water continually running into the drain. As the drain is at an incline the water flow is already very loud and will no doubt worsen when larger volumes of water flow into the drain during the construction and when water is directed from the South catchment.
As there is an Onsite Detention Storage system (OSD) in the hospital grounds, water can be discharged for days after a storm. While we appreciate the OSD will prevent the risk of an overflow, water will run through the drain for a longer duration, creating constant noise and intrusion day and night. Both bedrooms are located at the front of the house so this will impact the sleep and wellbeing of my relatives and other residents on the street. To put it in simple terms, it will be like a tap running in the house but being unable to turn it off.
We ask that the planning or engineering team review the current drainage plan and investigate how to best mitigate this noise pollution for the surrounding residents.


2. Termites (white ants) in the blue gum high forest on Ryedale Road
We are also concerned about the termites (white ants) in the trees located in the forest on Ryedale Road. As the clean up and removal of bush continues, to accommodate the redevelopment, there is a risk the termites will damage nearby homes on Ryedale Road and beyond. We have flagged this issue previously during stakeholder consultations and via email but they seem to be ignored. It is disappointing that the planning team is not concerned about the impact on local residents and their homes. To respond “this is not our problem” is not good enough.

This needs to be addressed as it poses a risk to the surrounding homes. Lack of action has already resulted in termites found in one of the electrical poles on Ryedale Road, which are regularly inspected by Ausgrid. We would like the planning team to take some ownership as the redevelopment is impacting the forest. At the very least, they should investigate whether there are termites in the forest and if so, the extent of the infestation.


To summarise, we do not agree with the current storm drainage plan and inaction on the redevelopment’s impact on the surrounding environment. We ask that alternative solutions are properly explored to alleviate these concerns above whilst still meeting the hospital's needs.

We look forward to hearing from the planning team on how they propose to address these issues and consult with the local community.

Thank you.