It appears that the prime purpose of this project is to reduce congestion on several roads such as Military Road, Spit Road, Wakehurst Parkway, Eastern Valley Road, by diverting traffic away from those roads onto the new facility. Has consideration been given to an alternate project of extending the Metro rail line from Victoria Cross to Brookvale via Neutral Bay Junction; Cremorne Junction; Spit Junction; Seaforth or Balgowlah, Brookvale, possibly extending this Metro to Dee Why and Narrabeen ? Such a project could encourage individuals to leave their car at home when commuting during peak periods.

I object to both the handling of feedback by the premier (and political beneficiary of this project) but moreover I object that this project benefits Mosman and Balgowlah residents, but Naremburn residents that are disadvantaged are in no way compensated for their loss of income and wealth and there are glaring safety issues from the proposed volumes of trucks.

This could be remedied simply, by;
• reducing Flatrock Drive to a 50 zone long term,
• putting in a bus service and bus lane on brook street going both ways after the project is complete (that stops on brook street)
• putting in a set of traffic lights that span Grafton avenue to Slade street,
• offering double glazing to residents on grafton/brook street and installing a sound shield down the eastern and western side of flatrock
• upgrade to Willoughby leisure centre (rather than the face lift) and
• Changing of zoning for houses on the east side of Brook Street.

Loss of public amenity during construction and once complete. More traffic being pushed onto the Warringah Freeway during peak periods into already stand still traffic without the benefit of slowing the feed in via the Spit . Unfiltered exhaust stacks near schools and outdoor areas is unacceptable. 24/7 construction in densely populated areas for years is also unacceptable. Only acting as a feeder to a Westconnex that does not have high enough vehicle numbers to meet the projections is a terrible justification for this project.

I am writing to you to raise my concerns and opposition to the Northern Beaches Tunnel. I am very concerned about the impact
the tunnel plans will have on my, my neighbouring communities and Sydney as a whole.

I am opposed to the proposed road tunnel and it’s route. My reasons for opposing the
route are:
1. The route covers the highest density of schools and pre-schools, hospitals and nursing
homes in Sydney where green space and amenity is already under considerable strain. We
dont want a road tunnel constructed which will be detrimental to our quality of life and
which will compete with several other coinciding major projects in the area.

2. Tunnelling will be completed in and around predominantly historic residential areas and
will subject homes to tremors, cracking, noise and sleepless nights during 24/7 construction
over a long period due to drilling, drawdown and truck movements.

3. Air pollution from construction puts our community’s health at risk. Fine dust particles
will enter the air, both in and around construction sites and transport corridors. Homes
around the construction sites will be exposed to silica dust (WHO Carcenogen), sporting
teams playing adjacent will breathe it in and local school communities will encounter this dust.
Hundreds of heavy vehicles will also move to and from dive sites spreading
carcinogenic diesel fumes across our communities, playing fields and natural environments.
This is a considerable health risk given dive sites are in valleys surrounded by sports fields
and residences.
4. Noise pollution will be a 24/7 problem. Trucks, drilling, ground work and preparation
activities will mean noise along and around the construction corridor. Noise travels. It will
impact residents, students and local businesses. It affects sleep, concentration, stress levels
and health. There are thousands of children living along the tunnel route who will be
impacted.

5. Road safety is a major concern, especially for our young children and the elderly. At least
70 trucks an hour will travel along residential streets from multiple dive sites across the
area, putting children at risk. Given the age of the area and the density it is unreasonable to
suggest this volume of trucks.

6. Sports and community recreation will suffer. Sports grounds have been targeted for
construction sites and will make them unusable. Where construction is planned for next to
sports grounds and parks, we will be affected by noise and air pollution and they will not be
safe to use for the duration of construction.

7. Precious bushland which supports endangered and native species and holds significant
indigenous value is at risk. The bushland and habitats around Wakehurst Parkway and at
Flat Rock Gully is particularly significant and will be destroyed due to clearing, run off, noise,
dust and contamination. Of particular concern is the idea that an old tip site (Flat Rock)
containing asbestos and heavy metals would be opened up in the heart of a residential and
recreational area – this is inconceivable and should not occur at any cost.

8. Flat Rock Gully is a significant water catchment area and runs down to Tunks Park and
Middle Harbour. Middle harbour is a sensitive marine ecosystem and mangrove area and
will be dredged. Both the noise along the echo chamber of Middle Harbour and the
contamination of the harbour via dredging and turbidity is objectionable.

7. The proposed design does not move the stacks away from schools, there are dozens of
child care centres and preschools also impacted. The health impacts on our young children
from unfiltered stacks in unacceptable. Doctors from the Children’s Hospital as well as
researchers from the World Health Organisation have repeatedly warned us about the
health impacts of increased pollution from roads. The WestConnex Inquiry found that stacks
should be filtered and tunnels built overseas have treated air. It is unacceptable that we are
proposing to build inferior infrastructure which poses a risk to our health.

8. Properties stand to significantly devalue. The reasons are many and varied including
construction noise, pollution concerns, dust, smoke stacks, the presence of tunnels
underneath homes and increased traffic and parking issues. Banks will re-classifying our
homes risk in terms of borrowing - in areas with high mortgages this puts families at
considerable financial risk.

9. There has been no business case released for these projects so there is no transparency
with regard to their justification and no ability for the community to publicly scrutinise the
allocation of public funds. A stated benefit of 15% reduction of traffic on Military Rd, which
planners say will be absorbed within 2 years, is an extremely poor return on investment for
our communities. Alternative sustainable public transport solutions have not been
presented to the community.

10. A road tunnel is a climate change contributor and the location significantly threatens
biodiversity via land clearing, hard surfaces/heat, diesel emissions from construction
vehicles, run off contamination, water pollution and ultimately an increase in carbon
emissions via increased reliance on cars (and roads which produce pollutants regardless of
the fuel source)

Based on the concerns raised, the only option is to stop the tunnels and consider alternate
routes and public transport options. In the interest of transparency and proper community
consultation an alternative options analysis and the business case should be presented to
the community as a minimum. Federal support for the projects is unacceptable until this has
been done. In fact, we would ask that our federal member represent our best interest and
the best interests of Sydney in addressing the above well researched concerns with the
State Government and insist on the Worlds Best Practice planning and transport solutions.

I object to the Beaches Link and Gore Hill Freeway Connection proposal because the health impact assessment has failed to recognise the health risks associated with the increases in road traffic noise exposure, therefore there is no guarantee that the proposed safeguards will ensure the objectives of the World Health Organisation are achieved. The attached details the deficiencies in the health impact assessment and noise & vibration technical working paper.

I live in Balgowlah and I object to the unfiltered exhaust stack being placed so close to houses, Balgowlah boys and Seaforth public schools.

I really do not understand, why the Government is wasting billions of dollars for a Road Tunnel.
The tunnel would only get a reprieve from traffic for a couple of year, cost us a lot in tolls, destroys habitats, and gives us big smokestacks.

What will happen with an accident in the tunnel?

Better solution:
We extend Metro West to the Northern Beaches. That enables us to be much faster in the City than with a new Road Tunnel. Building better public transport would take more cars of the road!

Take a B-Line bus from Dee Why:
It will take over an hour because of the bottle neck on the harbour bridge. From the southern end of the bridge to get to Wynyard takes 10-15mins alone in the morning. A metro would eliminate this problem as well.

If we had a metro, with possible stops in:
- Dee Why,
- Brookvale Oval/Mall,
- Manly Vale/Seaforth,
- Northbridge,
- Royal Northshore Hospital,
- and then to the Metro West.

This would let us to be in the city in 15-20 minutes!
It would help to lower global warming, as we get people out of their cars.


Build public transport and not more roads. This ridiculous.
Put in a Metro where you can read a book, talk with someone, or use your computer.

I support this project. It is important that we establish an alternative link from the Northern Beaches to the city and beyond. The surface roads are over worked and over congested and due to the ridiculous attitudes of local business owners and resident the government is hamstrung in the improvements they can make to Spit Road and Military Road (such as adequate clearways).