Lane Cove Tunnel and Epping Road in the Lane Cove area

This case study demonstrates design principle eight from the Beyond the Pavement urban design guide: Designing self-explaining roads that safely respond to their role and context.

Lane Cove Tunnel and Epping Road in the Lane Cove area

The 5km tunnel under Epping Road between the Lane Cove River and Gore Hill Link (1) not only completed the 110km Sydney orbital motorway network but diverted the regional surface traffic allowing Epping Road to be completely reconfigured in scale, function, visual character and relationship to neighbourhoods and industrial and commercial areas (2).

As part of the tunnel scope of works the road environment was changed from a 3-lane principal arterial to a transit corridor with dedicated 24-hour bus lanes and new shelters, new and modified pedestrian and cycle paths, improvement of the streetscape in terms of trees, vegetation and property frontages, a new bus interchange with pedestrian overpass (3) connecting the Lane Cove town centre and better connectivity across the corridor for pedestrians and traffic.

Thus, two completely different road environments with different speeds and clues to movement have been created. One relates to the tunnel and its design and the other to the reconfigured Epping Road and its changed streetscape, pattern of movement networks and connections—with reduced speed of traffic.

Lane Cove Road Epping Road intersection

Epping Road realigned after the tunnel opened to accommodate better bus and and active transport.

Lane Cove Tunnel eastern portal just prior to opening. The tunnel provided a four lane bypass of Epping Road and the Lane Cove area and completed the Sydney orbital motorway.