The community will get a behind-the-scenes look at the new Singleton Bypass at a free community day on Sunday 22 November.
The event will run from 10am to 3pm and is informal, with food trucks, information stalls and a sausage sizzle. About 4,000 free tickets are available online from 9am today. Tickets are limited to manage crowds and make sure Transport for NSW has enough staff on the day.
Minister for Roads and Regional Transport Jenny Aitchison said the day would give people the chance to walk along the bypass and understand how it will change their community. She said it would not disrupt the works, as the aim was to open the road as quickly as possible, and that a similar day for the M1 to Raymond Terrace link a few months ago had been a success.
The community day is not the opening of the bypass. Ms Aitchison said there was no exact date yet, but the road would be open to traffic by the end of the year.
“Anything can happen, particularly when we get to the asphalting stage, because if it’s too hot, it’s too cold, it’s too wet, that can all have an impact,” she said. She said the government wanted to be clear with the community about the date rather than set one arbitrarily.
The eight kilometre bypass includes a full interchange at Putty Road, connections to the New England Highway at the southern and northern ends, and a connection at Gowrie. Ms Aitchison said 1,370 people were working on the project and that the viaduct across the floodplain would be “an absolute game changer”.
“We know that congestion is really impacting on people and we want to make sure people can spend less time on the road and more time with friends and family doing what they love,” she said.
