Federal and state ministers say the project will improve both safety and truck operators’ bottom lines
The second and final stage of the Moree Bypass project has opened, six months earlier than anticipated.
Traffic first moved onto the new road on Monday, with Infrastructure minister Warren Truss formally opening the alternative route.
“The bypass included constructing1.8 kilometres of new road through east Moree, and the creation of a southern town entry so traffic can bypass Moree township,” he says.
“The Bullus Drive and Newell Highway intersection at the southern end of the bypass has also been upgraded to include traffic lights, replacing a T-intersection, which was unsafe.”
Truss, and NSW roads minister Duncan Gay, believe the bypass will divert more than 1700 trucks a day away from the Moree town centre, vastly improving safety and also reducing costs for transport operators.
“[It’s] the equivalent of one truck per minute during the day, and one truck every one and a half minutes at night,” Gay says.
The federal and NSW governments each provided $15 million towards the cost of the project.