TWEED SHIRE COUNCIL has completed the final stage of a $9 million upgrade to Kennedy Drive, Tweed Heads West, which marks the end of five years of work to upgrade this vital connecting road.
However, council said their will still be line-marked one night early next week and ancillary works will continue at the layby near Pioneer Park, but these works will not affect traffic flow.
“The Kennedy Drive upgrade began in 2011, with reconstruction of the road from Gray Street to Limosa Road. Stage 2, from Gray Street to the Pacific Motorway, began in October 2014 and was completed at the end of April 2015,” a Council spokesperson said.
“Then, this final stage, from the bridge to Limosa Road, began at the end of April this year.
“The upgrade, jointly funded by Tweed Shire Council, the Australian Government and the NSW Government, had to be delivered in stages to reduce the impact on residents and motorists in this highly constrained work environment.
“Kennedy Drive carries up to 20,000 cars a day and is the most direct route in and out of Bilambil Heights.
The upgrade will improve road safety, reduce the incidents of contact with overhead power poles, reduce road noise and reduce surface flooding during minor rainfall events.”
The benefits delivered include:
- An additional traffic lane, achieving two lanes in each direction from about 300m east of the bridge to the Pacific Motorway on-ramp
- New kerb, gutter, footpaths and maximum-width driveways for the length of Kennedy Drive
- Bigger stormwater drains and additional pits to let surface water get away quickly, and
- Extra contingency in the water reticulation system, with the duplication of the main line on both sides of Kennedy Drive and the removal of cross service connections from beneath the roadway.
Council thanks the community for their patience and cooperation during the roadworks.