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Business View Australia - January-February 2016 47
INFRASTRUCTURE
Bridge projects
There are 152 bridges and major cul-
verts within the municipal area. Three
important bridge projects that were
completed are:
Elderslie Road Bridge: This required
total replacement as the condition of
the existing structure had deteriorat-
ed to a point where it could not be re-
paired. During the process of putting
up an entirely new bridge at a cost of
$871,000, a slight realignment was
done to eliminate a sharp bend on the
south-eastern approach.
The reconstruction of this bridge was
essential as it provides access to the
Broadmarsh / Elderslie area. The con-
tract was undertaken by AusSpan,
who did an excellent job of completing
the project in an extremely competent
manner.
Brown Mountain Road Bridge: The
timber structure of the bridge, which
had been in existence for many years,
needed to be replaced. When the new
bridge was constructed in its place, it
was designed in a manner that a cen-
tre pier was removed. This facilitates
the passage of water during peak flow
periods.
There are a number of orchards in
the area and the bridge is important
as it provides access to them. The pro-
ject cost was in excess of $440,000.
Rotherwood Bridge: The old bridge
had a timber deck and timber rails on
a steel sub-structure. A relatively inex-
pensive project was executed at a cost
of $208,000 where a pre-cast seg-
mented concrete deck was installed
on the existing steel sub-structure.
The new deck allowed a steel guard
rail barrier to be installed, which pro-
vides a much higher degree of safety
compared to timber rails.
Planning for the future
Council has formulated a 10-year
plan to ensure that its municipal area
is provided with constantly upgraded
infrastructure and amenities. It has de-
voted a great deal of energy and time
to co-ordinate its activities with the
Department of Infrastructure, Energy
and Resources to improve the safety
and standard of the Midland Highway
and other State Roads along with road
junctions.
The leadership and direction provid-
ed by Council have made the munici-
pality one of the best managed in the
state.