{"id":38451,"date":"2026-04-16T17:42:27","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T07:42:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/?p=38451"},"modified":"2026-04-16T17:42:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T07:42:27","slug":"41-million-road-upgrade-cruises-past-midpoint","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/2026\/04\/16\/41-million-road-upgrade-cruises-past-midpoint\/","title":{"rendered":"$41 million road upgrade cruises past midpoint"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The largest road project funded by City of Newcastle has crossed the halfway mark, with dual lane upgrades set to ease traffic congestion in the western suburbs by Christmas. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The $41 million road widening project is a response to bottlenecks along Minmi Road and Longworth Avenue at peak times, and is designed to improve traffic flow for the tens of thousands of residents and commuters who travel through Wallsend every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"WesternCity of Newcastle Interim Executive Manager Project Delivery Matthew Bennett, Councillor Elizabeth Adamczyk, Daracon Project Manager Alison Wood and Councillor Callum Pull view progress on one of the Minmi Road sections of the Western Corridor Road Upgrade project.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When complete, more than 20,000 tonnes of asphalt will have been installed as part of the project, alongside 5.2 km of kerb, 92 stormwater pits and 7,100 sqm of landscaping to bolster Wallsend\u2019s urban forest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

City of Newcastle Interim Executive Manager Project Delivery Matthew Bennett said the western corridor project was the city\u2019s largest and most ambitious road upgrades to date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFrom the realignment and relocation of key services with partners like Hunter Water, Ausgrid and Telstra, to the forward-thinking approach we\u2019ve taken to greening the streets and median strips, we can be proud of the progress made so far,\u201d Mr Bennett said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn the coming weeks, you\u2019ll see work switch onto the northside of Minmi Road east of the Summerhill Road roundabout, and sections at both ends of Longworth Avenue, near Newcastle Road and Cowper Street, reach completion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAdditionally, significant underground and foundation work has been completed to deliver additional benefits to the local community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is not just a road duplication project, it\u2019s a major, long\u2011term investment in our western corridor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The project delivers new and upgraded stormwater infrastructure, watermain upgrades to improve water quality and security, and a comprehensive street garden program designed to reduce urban heat in the area. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUpgrades to the traffic signals at the intersection of Longworth Avenue and Cowper Street further enhance safety and efficiency for all road users.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"MinmiAn aerial view of progress on the lane duplication along Minmi Road, Wallsend<\/p>\n\n\n\n

City of Newcastle received $7.61 million under the NSW Government\u2019s Accelerated Infrastructure Fund towards this $41 million project. The project is estimated to support 3,000 homes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully welcomed the progress made on a project that will significantly improve the link between Newcastle and its growing western suburbs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s great to see the $41 million road upgrade progressing, which will deliver a tangible improvement to traffic flow for commuters travelling to and from the city,\u201d Mr Scully said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis project is paving the way for suburbs like Minmi and Fletcher to support more homes for people in the Newcastle region.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley said that reaching the halfway point on this project is a significant milestone for the entire region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLabor is delivering the essential road upgrades the region needs – projects like this that keep people moving, support local jobs and ensure freight and services can get where they need to go without delay,” Ms Catley said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis project is about delivering the roads that connect communities to work, school and essential services, while improving safety and cutting congestion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith the announcement that the Heatherbrae Bypass is now complete and this project hitting its halfway mark, we\u2019re getting on with delivering a more connected road network right across the Hunter, building for what the region needs now and into the future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

State Member for Wallsend Sonia Hornery said once complete this will be a game changer for residents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is an exciting milestone for a project which will have long term benefits for our community,\u201d Ms Hornery said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe upgrade will improve travel for thousands of people that travel through Wallsend every day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ward Four Councillors Elizabeth Adamczyk, Deahnna Richardson and Callum Pull welcomed news the project was tipped to conclude by Christmas.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRoadworks of this scale of course don\u2019t come without disruptions for neighbouring and nearby properties, so we\u2019d like to extend thanks to our residents for their patience while City of Newcastle has been completing these essential upgrades,\u201d Cr Adamczyk said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese upgrades are the largest roadworks project we\u2019ve ever delivered, and it\u2019s been great to see City of Newcastle and Daracon working in partnership with the Wallsend community and other agencies to minimise disruption,\u201d Cr Pull said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn addition to widening the road, it\u2019s fantastic to have active and public transport upgrades incorporated into the program, such as the shared cycleway and footpath that will run along Minmi Road,\u201d Cr Richardson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To keep up-to-date with the latest information, visit the project page<\/a> on City of Newcastle’s website.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The largest road project funded by City of Newcastle has crossed the halfway mark, with dual lane upgrades set to ease traffic congestion in the western suburbs by Christmas.  The $41 million road widening project is a response to bottlenecks along Minmi Road and Longworth Avenue at peak times, and is designed to improve traffic … Continue reading “$41 million road upgrade cruises past midpoint”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38451","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newcastle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38451","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38451"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38451\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38452,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38451\/revisions\/38452"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}