What is Airport Link?
Airport Link is a mainly underground toll road planned between Brisbane’s northern suburbs, the airport and the inner city.
Airport Link will connect the North-South Bypass Tunnel, Inner City Bypass and local road network at Bowen Hills to the northern arterials of Gympie Road and Stafford Road at Kedron and Sandgate Road and the East-West Arterial in the city’s north-east.
Airport Link will comprise two tunnels (one northbound and one southbound) at least 20m apart and up to 50m underground between Windsor and Kedron, and up to 35m underground between Kedron and Clayfield.
There will be three lanes each way between Bowen Hills and Kedron and two lanes each way between Kedron and Toombul/Clayfield.
Benefits of Airport Link
Airport Link is expected to:
- cater for 95,000 motorists a day in 2012 rising to 120,000 by 2026
- enable motorists to bypass 16 sets of traffic lights between Bowen Hills and Kedron and 14 sets of traffic lights between Bowen Hills and Toombul
- enhance the liveability of the northern suburbs with freed-up surface road space available for improved public transport and pedestrian and cycling links
- provide opportunities for better land use in the inner northern suburbs currently affected by traffic congestion
- reduce congestion-related air pollution within the project corridor
- reduce road traffic noise for properties fronting roads within the project corridor.
Read more about why we need Airport Link
Project Update
On 19 May 2008, the Queensland Government announced BrisConnections as the preferred bidder for the Airport Link, Northern Busway (Windsor to Kedron) and the Airport Roundabout upgrade projects.
On 30 July 2008 financial close was achieved enabling the Airport Link and Northern Busway (Windsor to Kedron) projects to enter the pre-construction phase. On this day, the Coordinator-General issued his final approval for Airport Link with the release of his Change Report. Read more.
Background
The State Government and Brisbane City Council began investigating Airport Link in detail in July 2005. Read more about the Airport Link Detailed Feasibility Study
In October 2005 a preferred corridor was identified and the Coordinator-General declared Airport Link a ‘significant project’ under the State Development and Public Works Organisation Act 1971.
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) investigations for Airport Link began in November 2005. Completed in October 2006, the EIS was put on public display for a period of eight weeks.
The EIS drew more than 300 written submissions, airing a range of concerns mainly relating to construction impacts, air quality and traffic.
The project team prepared a Supplementary Report in response to the EIS submissions for the Coordinator-General’s consideration during his evaluation, of the EIS and the EIS submissions.
In late May 2007, after completing his evaluation the Coordinator-General prepared an evaluation report which made recommendations and imposed conditions on the project that must be implemented to manage environmental impacts.
The Coordinator-General also recommended that innovative solutions be sought from the bidders to manage potential construction impacts, particularly on local schools and neighbourhoods.
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