Mornington Area Road Improvement program
The Mornington Area Road Improvements program will be made up of four projects in the Mornington area that will improve travel times and road safety for all users.
About the project
In 2020, the Sorell to Hobart Corridor Plan recognised that the Mornington Interchange and roundabout formed a bottleneck along the Tasman Highway. Following this, the Mornington Traffic Solution Study (2021-24) was completed to explore potential solutions that would help address the issues along this corridor.
The Mornington Traffic Solution Study included a traffic study, community consultation and an assessment of how upgrade options could improve safety and travel times in the area. We found four priority projects that will make up the overall program of improvements for the Mornington area.
- Building ramps on Gordons Hill Road that connect Gordons Hill Road with the Tasman Highway. (Gordon’s Hill Road Interchange)
- Moving and changing the Mornington Road and South Arm Highway intersection
- Moving the west bound off ramp that currently goes from the Tasman Highway on to the South Arm Highway
- Replacement of the existing roundabout at the intersection of Cambridge Road and the South Arm Highway with traffic lights.
The program will improve travel time reliability, deliver more effective and efficient movement of people and goods, and improve safety for all road users, including providing better options for people to walk, wheel or ride.
We are replacing the existing Mornington Roundabout with traffic signals to improve traffic flow through the area. We considered several options including an overpass, but it was decided that traffic lights were the best option, as they support increasing traffic volumes, impact nearby properties less, and provide better options for people to walk, wheel or ride.
Community consultation
Stakeholder and community consultation for the Mornington Traffic Solution Study was held over a two-week period from Monday, 11 October 2021 to Sunday, 24 October 2021.
Engagement activities included:
- an online interactive map inviting ideas and comments, with an online survey
- email submissions.
The objective of the consultation was to gather information and ideas from a broad range of key stakeholders and community. The feedback received helped identify the four priority upgrade projects.
You can view the Mornington Traffic Solution Study Consultation and Feedback Summary Report here: Read the Consultation Summary Report (August 2022) (PDF 400.1 KB).
Timing
The improvements program will happen in stages, with the first stage being the Gordon’s Hill Road Interchange project. Once finished, we will continue with the other projects near the Mornington Roundabout. We will work out the best order to build these projects as we work through the designs and consult with the community.
Construction for the Gordon’s Hill Road Interchange project is planned for late 2026. Community consultation and design work will begin in 2025 and include:
- public consultation and key stakeholder meetings to collect feedback on draft designs before design decisions are finalised
- meetings with property owners, occupiers and local businesses that could be affected by the project
- environmental studies which will look at potential impacts to native plants and animals and come up with ways to avoid impacts, reduce or manage any impacts, as well as obtain any required environmental approvals from relevant authorities.
Completing this project first will reduce traffic on the Mornington Roundabout and the surrounding roads while we deliver the remaining projects. It will also provide traffic on the Tasman Highway a more direct access to Rosny Park and Bellerive.
This map below shows the location of the planned work.
Find out more about the project by clicking the video below.
FAQs
Why is the program being delivered in stages?
The program will be delivered in stages to minimise the impacts of construction on all road users. The Gordons Hill Road ramps will be built first to allow cars better access to Rosny from the highway and reduce the number of cars on the roads around the Mornington Roundabout. Once finished, we will continue with other improvements near the Mornington Roundabout. If we were to deliver all four projects at once, there would be extensive delays across the Mornington and Rosny area. This would then affect the whole Hobart road network.
Why is Gordons Hill Road Interchange the first project to start?
The Gordons Hill Road Interchange is being prioritised because:
- it will relieve existing traffic pressure on Cambridge Road and the Mornington roundabout before we start delivering the following projects
- it will provide traffic on Tasman Highway with a more direct access to Rosny Park and Bellerive
- the project is a major road priority for Clarence City Council.
When will Gordons Hill Road Interchange project start?
The Gordons Hill Road Interchange will be the first project to begin. Community consultation and design work will begin in 2025, with construction expected in late 2026.
Why are traffic lights replacing the roundabout?
We are replacing the existing Mornington roundabout with traffic signals to improve traffic flow through the area. We considered several options including an overpass, but it was decided that traffic lights were the best option, as they impact nearby properties less and allow us to provide better options for people to walk, wheel, or ride. The timing of the traffic lights can also be adjusted to improve traffic flow depending on the time of day and traffic conditions.
While the option of an overpass was explored, it would have large impacts on the surrounding community and would be significantly more expensive.
What improvements will there be for pedestrians and cyclists?
Consultation showed that the community wants to see improvements to make the area safer for people walking, riding, wheeling and catching buses. We will improve crossing points to make it safer for active transport users and bus patrons to travel through the area.
By replacing the roundabout with traffic signals, there will be new, safe crossing options for people walking, wheeling, and riding.
When will the remaining projects start?
We will start planning and designing the remaining three projects in 2025. Construction of the Gordons Hill Road Interchange will be the first to start, with construction expected in late 2026.
Funding
The Australian and Tasmanian governments have committed a total of $100 million to make improvements in this area.
Accessibility
If you would like to find out more information and you have accessibility requirements, please contact the project team (details below) or email morningtonarearoadimprovements@stategrowth.tas.gov.au.
You can find out more about Transport Services' commitment to accessibility.
Contact
If you have any questions, feedback or concerns, please contact our Stakeholder and community Engagement Consultant David Gladwin on 03 8668 3697.
You can also contact the project team at morningtonarearoadimprovements@stategrowth.tas.gov.au.