Journeys into Fremantle are now easier with the completion of the $76 million High Street upgrade project between Carrington Street and Stirling Highway.
The project was jointly funded by the Australian and Western Australian governments.
More than 37,000 vehicles use the road every day and it is anticipated journey times will be smoother and less congested, by eliminating delays at the High Street and Stirling Highway intersection.
Without the project in place, traffic modelling indicates that by 2031, journey times between Carrington Street and Stirling Highway would have taken up to 14 minutes longer.
Improving safety on the road was also a key consideration. In the five years immediately prior to the works, there were 399 crashes on this stretch of road, with 72 of these at the intersection of High Street and Stirling Highway.
Works included:
- Roundabout replacing traffic lights at the intersection of High Street and Stirling Highway;
- New bypass lanes at the intersection separating local traffic from traffic heading to or from Fremantle Port;
- The separation of eastbound and westbound traffic through a mature tree-lined median;
- A service road to provide safe access to properties on the northern side of High Street;
- Two new underpasses improving connectivity to schools, parks, shopping and recreation.
The project was developed and delivered with local stakeholders and the community.
This has been reflected in the design of amenity walls, new netball parking, incorporation of Aboriginal and European heritage themes in the project artwork and the environmentally sustainable drainage solution at Horrie Long Reserve.
Main Roads also worked closely with the community to undertake a localised planting program, with an area of Booyeembara Park revegetated as tuart woodland. Almost 5,000 plants were planted as part of this initiative, including over 400 tuart trees.
The project also supported the purchase and planting of 4,000 new tuart trees, through a partnership with A Trillion Trees, with volunteers planting the trees at Whiteman Park in 2020.
This project marks the completion of the WA Government's 2017 priority projects commitments.
Comments attributed to Premier, Hon Mark McGowan MLA:
"My Government is committed to improving safety on our roads, easing congestion and slashing travel time - meaning less times in our cars and more time with family.
"The completion of this project means a safer and more efficient route for locals and visitors travelling to and from Fremantle as well as improving the freight route for heavy vehicles heading to the Inner Harbour.
"This is the final project of our 15 priority projects that we first started in partnership with the Commonwealth Government in 2017, that have created thousands of local jobs, eased congestion and slashed travel times."
Comments attributed to Federal Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts Paul Fletcher:
"The Morrison Government is getting on with delivering infrastructure projects that improve congestion and safety for commuters across Australia, making it easier for them to move around our capital cities and ensuring they get home quickly and safely.
"We provided $47.4 million towards this important project as part of our record $110 billion investment pipeline, which is helping to drive Australia's world-leading economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic."
Comments attributed to Transport Minister, Hon Rita Saffioti MLA:
"High Street is a heavily constrained area and was a notorious blackspot, with 399 crashes between 2014 and 2019 - 72 of these occurred at the intersection of High Street and Stirling Highway.
"The completion of this project will mean safer journeys and less congestion - modelling for 2031 predicted journey times between Carrington Street and Stirling Highway would take up to 14 minutes longer without the project in place.
"I'm really pleased we were also able to upgrade the parking and safety at the netball courts and include two underpasses that will provide better connections for the local community, as part of the project.
"This is also the final project of our 15 high priority road projects in Perth's Metropolitan area that we started working on in 2017.
"In the past five years we have transformed Perth's freeways, delivered safer and more efficient interchanges and improved access to our major road network for residents, businesses and commuters."
Comments attributed to Hon. Ben Small, Senator for Western Australia:
"Our growing community is supported by a Federal Government that understands what Western Australians need, and invests in infrastructure to support our lifestyle and economy.
"Federal grants such as this one keep our businesses moving and help reduce the number of Aussies missing around the dinner table due to crashes on our roads."
Premier's office - 6552 5000
Transport Minister's office - 6552 5500
