Roads & bridges
Client: Ipswich Motorway Upgrade
Value: AU$1.95b awarded, final AU$1.22b
Completion date: End of 2011
Capability: Roads and bridges, Joint venture
Australia’s largest road infrastructure alliance
The Ipswich Motorway is one of the busiest motorways in Queensland and is the major link between Brisbane and Ipswich. Each day, more than 100,000 vehicles cross it.
The Motorway forms part of the Auslink National Network and is the major freight corridor between the Port of Brisbane and Brisbane’s Southern industrial hub and interstate destinations.
Fulton Hogan was proud to be involved in this AU$1.9b project – Australia’s largest road infrastructure alliance.
Providing a sustainable solution
The Origin Alliance, consisting of the Department of Transport and Main Roads, Fulton Hogan, Abigroup, Seymour Whyte Constructions, SMEC Australia and Parsons Brinckerhoff, was assigned the task of upgrading this motorway to provide a safer, more reliable and sustainable solution for the Western Corridor and South-east Queensland’s wider transportation network.
The project involved upgrading an 8.5km section of the motorway, from Dimore to Goodna, from four to six lanes, as well as providing provision for increasing to eight lanes in the future. The comprehensive project included 21 new bridges, a network of new service roads that separate local and regional traffic and eliminated the need for motorists to access the motorway. Tapping into the very latest technology to manage capacity and promote safety made this a road for the future.
The challenges faced by the alliance included remediation of three abandoned underground coal mines, as well as removal of more than 200 unexploded First and Second World War ordnances on a former rifle range. The effective traffic management of the 100,000-plus vehicles travelling each day added another dimension to the project, with more than 600 traffic switches required for smooth, safe traffic flow.
Because of the drilling and filling techniques required to stabilise the disused mines that lay beneath the corridor footprint, this project was one of Australia’s largest government-funded road projects.
Each mine presented its own challenges and required different drilling and filling treatments. The cavities were filled using a purpose-built grout manufacturing and mixing plant that was constructed on-site. Reclaimed water from the mines was also treated at the on-site water treatment plant, to be re-used on-site for a variety of construction activities, including the production of the grout used to fill the mines.
Prioritising safety
Safety is Fulton Hogan’s number one priority, for our people, our communities and motorists. Our exemplary safety conduct was showcased throughout this project and when the Alliance won both the Queensland Major Contractors Association’s annual Project Safety Excellence Award and ‘Best Workplace Health and Safety Management System’ at the Safe Work Australia Awards in 2012, the recognition from our industry peers was an honour.
More than 1,000,000m³ of earthworks was completed and 54,000m² of retaining walls was constructed for the Ipswich Motorway. Fulton Hogan was also the key supplier for the asphalt and spray seal components of the work, with more than 500,000 tonnes of heavy duty asphalt pavement supplied by our own Staplyton asphalt plant.
Our team at Fulton Hogan was privileged to be part of the most complex and challenging road infrastructure projects undertaken in South-east Queensland and we were proud to see the upgraded Ipswich Motorway officially opened in May 2012 – under budget and 6 months ahead of schedule, despite numerous challenges, including the devastating Brisbane floods in January 2011, which stopped work for up to four weeks.
