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Major construction to remove a choke point on a key arterial route to Sydney’s northern beaches could start as early as mid-2027 – about a year earlier than previously planned – as a wide-ranging review sparks calls for plans for the multibillion-dollar Beaches Link motorway tunnel to be revived.
The prospect of a $500 million widening of the western section of Mona Vale Road starting next year comes as critical upgrades to the Wakehurst Parkway between North Narrabeen and Frenchs Forest begin in several months.
The upgrade to sections of the Wakehurst Parkway is costing $85 million, which is about $10 million higher than estimates several years ago. The arterial route used by about 30,000 motorists a day is congested during peak periods while flooding can often force authorities to close the road.
Roads Minister Jenny Aitchison said the upgrade to Wakehurst Parkway had been long ignored, and the state government was now ensuring it would be completed by awarding a contract for the work.
The work on Wakehurst Parkway, which will comprise intersection upgrades and flood protection measures, is due to be completed by the first quarter of 2028.
Aitchison said the government was eager to push ahead with road upgrades as quickly as possible after cost increases of about 30 per cent to deliver projects. “We’ve been working every day to bring those timelines forward because we know that every delay costs us money,” she said.
Transport for NSW executive director Deanne Forrest said the agency was considering a change to the contract type for the Mona Vale Road upgrade which, if chosen, would allow construction to start by the middle of next year.
The upgrade to fix the Mona Vale Road choke point will take about three and a half years.
The agency needs to finalise the project’s scope before determining the number of properties that will have to be acquired for the road’s widening.
Independent Pittwater MP Jacqui Scruby said residents had been waiting years for upgrades to both the Wakehurst Parkway and Mona Vale Road which were “not fit for purpose” in their existing states.
“Upgrading these major roads will be a game changer for Pittwater residents,” she said.
A major review of key road corridors across Sydney’s lower north shore and northern beaches was opened on Monday for public consultation, prompting independent Wakehurst MP Michael Regan to call for the state government to consider reviving plans for the Northern Beaches Link between Balgowlah and the Warringah Freeway at North Sydney.
The Perrottet government put the seven-kilometre Beaches Link on ice in 2022, while the incoming Labor government officially shelved the project a year later.
Regan, who is a former Northern Beaches mayor, said the Beaches Link and the so-called Officeworks intersection between Warringah and Harbord roads topped his wishlist of projects.
“The [Beaches Link] project sits on the shelf ready to be done and delivered. We’ll continue to push for it because it’s a vital link … for the upper northern beaches,” he said. “The project is ready to go – it just needs the funding.”
Asked whether the Minns government would revive plans if it was re-elected next year, Aitchison said she did not want to “hang our hats” on one or two projects but instead was focused on improving road traffic flows and bus services across the northern beaches.
“We’re looking at how we can use bus priority lanes, how we use intersection upgrades, how we look at the whole flow of traffic,” she said.
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Matt O’Sullivan is transport and infrastructure editor at The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.From our partners
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