NorthConnex


NorthConnex is a motorway tunnel under construction in northern Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, with an expected completion in the third quarter of 2020. It will act as a tunnel bypass of the congested Pennant Hills Road, connecting the M1 Pacific Motorway to the M2 Hills Motorway. It will also be the longest and deepest road tunnel in Australia after the Westconnex M8.
It was previously known as the F3 to M2 link, then renamed the M1 to M2 link in 2013 after alpha numeric route numbers began to be used in New South Wales. The road has also colloquially been referred to as the "missing link", because its construction will complete the combination of the Sydney Orbital Network and its north-south motorway links to the National Highway.

Alignment

NorthConnex will be a tolled motorway tunnel linking the M1 Pacific Motorway at Wahroonga to the M2 Hills Motorway at West Pennant Hills. NorthConnex will be integrated within the existing Sydney Orbital Network and the need for integration work at either end has been identified to enable the safe merge of traffic on and off the M1 and M2 optimising motorway performance. The northern and southern interchanges will be constructed to accommodate connections to Pennant Hills Road at either end of the tunnel.
Once the project is completed, drivers will not encounter a single traffic light from Melbourne to Newcastle.

Toll

Pricing

Toll prices on NorthConnex will be aligned with the toll prices on M2 Hills Motorway, which are 7.91 for cars and 23.73 for heavy vehicles as of 2020. Toll prices would increase in line with the proposed concession agreement with the Government, ending in 2048.

Pennant Hills Road regulation

When NorthConnex opens, trucks and buses over 12.5 metres long or over 2.8 metres clearance height travelling between the M1 and M2 are forbidden to use Pennant Hills Road and must use the NorthConnex tunnels instead, unless they have a genuine destination only accessible via Pennant Hills Road. Trucks and buses will be monitored by two gantries located along Pennant Hills Road, one at Normanhurst and one at Beecroft / West Pennant Hills. A fine of 191 with no demerit points will also be imposed on truck and bus drivers detected using Pennant Hills Road with the traffic flow. An exception applies to vehicles transporting dangerous goods and oversize vehicles approved to use Pennant Hills Road.

History

Past proposals

The M1 Pacific Motorway was originally planned to continue as the Lane Cove Valley Expressway, which was to join the North Western Expressway, leading to the Sydney Central Business District via Gladesville Bridge and the Western Distributor, but those plans were cancelled in 1977. By the time the M1 Pacific Motorway was extended to Wahroonga in 1989, there was no plan for a motorway route continuing beyond that location.
In 2001, at the same time as announcing commencement of the M7, the Federal Government proposed that the M7 would form part of a bypass route, with a new road branching off the M1 Pacific Motorway near Mount White and crossing the Hawkesbury River with a new high-level bridge to join the M7 at its distinct northwestern corner at Dean Park. Hence, the road would avoid the steep grades of the Mount White section of the Pacific Motorway immediately north of the existing low-level bridges across the Hawkesbury River and would be a quite direct bypass of Sydney that would be separated from much of Sydney's commuter traffic.
A study was undertaken into options for connecting the Pacific Motorway with the M7. At the preliminary stage of that study, the then Roads and Traffic Authority decided that the primary goal of the new road was the best possible relief of traffic on the existing route, Pennant Hills Road. Corridors for that proposal were broadly defined as types A, B and C.
The need to reduce traffic on Pennant Hills Road made the reduction of commuter traffic more urgent than that of traffic bypassing Sydney. As such, type B and C options were rejected early in the planning process.
Four type A options were identified. All involved extensive tunnelling. One of these, following the Hornsby - Epping railway line near the M1 and underneath Pennant Hills Road towards the M2, was selected as the preferred option.
On 17 February 2007, The Hon. Jim Lloyd MP announced the establishment of an independent review of the F3 to M7 Corridor Selection. The review was carried out by The Hon. Mahla Pearlman, who is a former Chief Judge of the NSW Land and Environment Court. The report was released on 14 September 2007. The conclusions of the report were that the proposed tunnels should proceed but that planning for the longer term connection between the Pacific Motorway and the M7 should also commence immediately.

Project revival

Plans to construct the M1 to M2 link tunnels were announced in 2013. The link between the M1 and M2 is recognised in the NSW Government's State Infrastructure Strategy and the Transport for NSW Long Term Transport Master Plan as important infrastructure for freight traffic and the wider connectivity within NSW to reduce congestion and improve traffic flow along Pennant Hills Road.
In 2013, The National Roads and Motorists' Association identified the arterial, Pennant Hills Road as the third worst road in NSW and the ACT. This rating reflected the level of frustration experienced by road users. Traffic congestion is often associated with poor road safety and further compounding congestion into off-peak period. The rate of accidents along the arterial strip was significantly higher when compared to the NSW average. The aim of NorthConnex is to provide a safe, reliable motorway alternative for traffic reducing congestion and the frequency of accidents.
Pennant Hills Road currently carries approximately 80,000 vehicles per day of which more than 10,000 are trucks. The proposed two lane tunnel can carry more than 100,000 vehicles per day.

Funding

The 3 billion, consisting of a construction budget of A$2.65 billion in addition to land and project delivery costs, will be funded through toll charges and a contribution from the NSW and Australian Governments of up to A$405 million each.

Criticism

There was community opposition and criticism to a proposed ventilation exhaust to be built for the tunnels near schools in Sydney.
There is also some contention within the local community about how successful the chosen route option will be in easing traffic congestion on Pennant Hills Road. Ku-ring-gai Council has also raised a significant concern that the current proposal does not address the worsening traffic on the Pacific Highway from Wahroonga through to the Gore Hill Freeway at Artarmon. To help address this, construction of east-facing tunnel ramps under Pennant Hills Golf Course to the M2 Motorway may be considered in the future if required.

Construction

Selection of the preferred construction contractor was announced on 16 March 2014, along with the new name - NorthConnex.
Approval for the construction and operation of NorthConnex was granted in January 2015 by the NSW Minister of Planning. Australian motorway operator, Transurban and its partners in the Westlink M7 were awarded the contract to build, maintain and operate NorthConnex.
Preliminary work activities started on 5 February 2015 and continued until major construction began in mid-2015. The project was originally due to be completed by the end of 2019 but has been delayed into 2020 with the contractor citing the depth of the tunnel as presenting challenges to the construction time frame.