Have your say on road design to improve Tumbulgum exit
19 October 2020
Community feedback closes next Friday 30 October
Council is seeking feedback from the community on its plans to improve safety at the intersection of Tweed Valley Way and Riverside Drive (north) at Tumbulgum.
You can view the concept design for this federally funded Black Spot upgrade at yoursaytweed.com.au/blackspot and make comment by Friday 30 October 2020.
One of the main safety improvements proposed is to close direct access from the Farmers’ Market on to Tweed Valley Way.
“We intend to close this access by installing guardrail along Tweed Valley Way,” Manager Roads and Stormwater Danny Rose said.
“This means access to the market will be from Riverside Drive only. We have had a number of unsafe incidents and close calls from people trying to exit the market into the higher speed traffic on Tweed Valley Way.”
Another safety improvement sought will be to provide greater separation of the left-turn lane into Riverside Drive from the through-lanes on Tweed Valley Way to improve sight distances.
The Black Spot project will also:
• allow a longer deceleration lane to turn into Riverside Drive
• realign Riverside Drive to allow a straighter approach for traffic turning right on to Tweed Valley Way, and
• provide an improved acceleration lane on Tweed Valley Way for traffic turning left from Riverside Drive.
To allow Tweed Valley Way to be widened to accommodate these safety improvements, a nearby culvert will be upgraded.
The culvert work will start later this month with the Black Spot works due to begin in early December.
Black Spot programs are funded based on historic crash data and the severity of injury.
“Council’s engineers have considered a number of alternative designs, with this being the preferred concept based on the safety benefits while maintaining capacity for high volumes of through traffic, the land available and project cost,” Mr Rose said.
A number of works have occurred on this section of Tweed Valley Way in recent years to improve safety for all road users including the construction of a wire rope centre median and the reduction of the speed limit from 100kmh to 80kmh.
To have your say, go to yoursaytweed.com.au/blackspot and provide your feedback by Friday 30 October.