Graham Farmer Freeway | |
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| Western tunnel entrance viewed from the Charles Street bus bridge | |
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| General information | |
| Type | Freeway |
| Length | 6.5 km (4.0 mi) |
| Opened | 24 April 2000 |
| Route number(s) |  State Route 8 |
| Major junctions | |
| West end |
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| East end |
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| Location(s) | |
| Major suburbs / towns | West Perth,Northbridge,East Perth,Burswood |
| Highway system | |
TheGraham Farmer Freeway is a 6.5-kilometre (4.0 mi) inner-city freeway inPerth, Western Australia. It links theMitchell Freeway inWest Perth toGreat Eastern Highway andOrrong Road inBurswood, providing an east–west bypass of the city's central business district. Named afterAustralian rules footballerPolly Farmer, the Graham Farmer Freeway has a 1.6-kilometre (1.0 mi) cut-and-cover tunnel throughNorthbridge known as theNorthbridge Tunnel.
After decades of proposals, the Western Australian state government committed in 1993 to building theCity Northern Bypass, as it was known at the time. After trenched and partially tunnelled options were assessed, it was chosen that the bypass would be fully tunnelled through Northbridge. The construction was split into two main contracts. The section from the Mitchell Freeway to East Parade, including the Northbridge Tunnel, was constructed by theBaulderstone–Clough Joint Venture. The section from East Parade to Great Eastern Highway, including theWindan Bridge across theSwan River, was constructed by theTransfieldThiess Joint Venture.
The Northbridge Tunnel was constructed top-down, by constructing the ceiling and walls first, then excavating the inside, causing large disruption to Northbridge. Construction on the tunnel started in March 1997 from the western end; breakthrough at the eastern end was achieved in January 1999. The Windan Bridge was constructed between December 1997 and September 1999 using theincremental launch method. The Graham Farmer Freeway opened to traffic on 24 April 2000, resulting in a decrease in traffic onThe Causeway andRiverside Drive. In 2013, a third lane was added to the tunnel in each direction by subsuming the emergency stopping lane.
The Graham Farmer Freeway is 6.5 kilometres (4.0 mi) long, and links theMitchell Freeway inWest Perth toGreat Eastern Highway andOrrong Road inBurswood, providing an east–west bypass of the Perth central business district (CBD).[1][2] It is part of State Route 8, along with Orrong Road andWelshpool Road East.[3] The speed limit for the whole freeway is 80 kilometres per hour (50 mph).[4][5]
The Graham Farmer Freeway commences at the Mitchell Freeway's Hamilton Interchange, which was designed at the time of the Mitchell Freeway's construction to allow for the Graham Farmer Freeway's connection. There is full freeway access to all directions at the interchange, plus on- and off-ramps from the Graham Farmer Freeway toLoftus Street[6][7] and an off-ramp toJames Street.[7][8] AtFitzgerald Street, the freeway enters the 1.6-kilometre (1.0 mi) Northbridge Tunnel, which travels parallel betweenNewcastle Street andAberdeen Street, before s-bending north atBeaufort Street to travel parallel between Newcastle Street and Parry Street. AtLord Street, the Graham Farmer Freeway exits the tunnel.[7]
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East of Lord Street, the Graham Farmer Freeway travels parallel to and on the northern side of the railway line, connecting to East Parade at adiamond interchange, through which access is provided to Lord Street as well viacollector-distributor lanes. East of East Parade, the freeway crosses theSwan River via theWindan Bridge, which is parallel to the railway'sGoongoongup Bridge. InBurswood, the freeway bends towards the south-west, connecting to Victoria Park Drive via a diamond interchange, before diverging from the railway and passing under the Riversdale Road bridge. The freeway terminates atGreat Eastern Highway via a modified diamond interchange with an additional loop ramp from the highway westbound to the freeway northbound. South of Great Eastern Highway, the freeway turns into Orrong Road.[7]
The first proposal for a northern bypass was made by the Metropolitan Town Planning Commission in 1930. It would have cut across fromThe Causeway to Newcastle Street.[9] In 1955, thePlan for the Metropolitan Region, Perth and Fremantle, also known as theStephenson–Hepburn Report, was released. It said that a "Burswood Highway" should be built, which would followRoe Street and Wittenoom Street, before crossing the Swan River and terminating at Great Eastern Highway.[10] The route of the highway was changed and upgraded to a freeway when theMetropolitan Region Scheme was adopted in 1963 though, with it now running between Newcastle and Aberdeen Streets and forming a ring road withRiverside Drive.[9][11] The state government commenced acquiring the land for this in the 1960s, with some of the land leased back to private tenants.[9] The cost and political difficulty of building such a road through Northbridge meant that construction did not occur until decades later.[12] Due to a lack of investment in the land, it fell into disrepair.[9]
In 1988, the proposed route within East Perth was moved next to the railway bridge, instead of bisecting East Perth as was previously planned.[13] In the early 1990s, the Department of Planning and Urban Development commissioned theBurswood Bridge and Road Study, to assess the need for the city northern bypass, and determine its alignment and design. At the time, Riverside Drive and The Causeway were heavily congested, with much of the traffic using those roads heading through the CBD rather than to or from.[14] The study, published in September 1993, recommended the construction of the northern bypass road and a third major river crossing in the East Perth area. The report recommended two options: one as a trench through Northbridge with two short tunnels forA$235 million, and another as a trench through Northbridge with no tunnels for $155 million. The first option would have had tunnels from Stirling Street to west ofBeaufort Street, and from Lake Street toFitzgerald Street.[15] A public comments period began thereafter.[16] Public hearings were held in the first half of 1994.[17] The Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) recommended in mid-1994 that the road's alignment through East Perth be moved south towards the railway line and lowered, saving 48 properties and impacting 13 new properties. The MPC also recommended that the route be fully tunnelled instead of partially, in response to public submissions.[18] The other options divided Northbridge too much and produce too much noise and air pollution. It was ruled the full tunnel's aesthetic, environmental and social benefits would outweigh the increased cost of $300 million. Land acquisition began in October 1994.[19] In April 1995, it was announced that the City Northern Bypass would be constructed for $335 million, funded by a four cents per litre increase in the fuel levy and from theconsolidated revenue fund.[20]
The construction of the City Northern Bypass, as it was known at the time, was divided into two contracts. The first contract involved the construction of the Northbridge Tunnel, the interchanges with the Mitchell Freeway and Lord Street, and a 250-metre (820 ft) rail tunnel for theMidland line to pass under the freeway. Five consortia expressed interest in this contract;[21] three of them were shortlisted in August 1995:Baulderstone Hornibrook andClough; the Citypass Consortium, consisting ofJohn Holland,McConnell Dowell andObayashi Corporation; andTransfield andThiess.[22] The Baulderstone–Clough Joint Venture was selected in February 1996[23] and the contract was signed three months later for $203.8 million.[24][25] Construction on the tunnel began in September 1996.[26] The second contract involved the construction of the bridge across the Swan River, now known as the Windan Bridge, and the freeway between East Parade and Great Eastern Highway / Orrong Road. Four consortia submitted expressions of interest: Baulderstone–Clough Joint Venture;Leighton Contractors; Transfield Thiess Joint Venture; and John Holland. The first three were shortlisted in July 1996.[27] The Transfield Thiess Joint Venture was selected in November 1996[28] and the contract was signed in March 1997 for $59.4 million.[29][30]
The City Northern Bypass, particularly the section through Northbridge, was controversial due to its impacts on Northbridge and on encouraging car use.[31] Prominent critics included federal member forPerthStephen Smith, state member forPerthDiana Warnock, shadow state transport ministerAlannah MacTiernan[32] andGordon Stephenson, the co-author of thePlan for the Metropolitan Region, Perth and Fremantle. Stephenson said that the road would be predominantly used by traffic accessing the CBD, not bypassing it, and it would encourage driving rather than catching public transport, walking or cycling to the CBD. The Cities for People campaign was formed in opposition to the freeway.[33] By February 1996, Western Australia'sEnvironmental Protection Authority (EPA) ruled out a formal environmental impact assessment for the City Northern Bypass, and that an informal assessment would take place, which came without the requirement for public submissions.[34] This intensified opposition to the project on environmental grounds. Stephen Smith and shadow state environment ministerJudy Edwards appealed the decision, citing groundwater flow, noise, and dust.[35] Clough Group's chairman Harold Clough said in February 1996 that a tougher environmental assessment would have helped "silence critics".[35][34] Afreedom of information request by the Cities for People campaign revealed that the EPA spent just three and a half hours assessing the project.[36][37] However, acting environment ministerKevin Prince stated in April 1996 that the normal development processes would be sufficient to manage environmental issues, and rejected claims that the EPA's decision was rushed.[38]
The tunnel was constructed using a top-down method. The roof and walls were poured first, and then the tunnel was excavated. The route predominantly went through backyards, minimising the number of buildings that were demolished.[31] Fifty-eight buildings were demolished, twenty-two of which had local heritage significance.[39][40] The first section of roof to be poured was the western section, at Fitzgerald Street in March 1997.[41] By August 1997, the tunnel construction site had reached 600 metres (2,000 ft) long, with 400 metres (1,300 ft) of walls and 200 metres (660 ft) of roof in place, and less than 100 metres (330 ft) of tunnel excavated. Due to the area's highwater table,dewatering was required.[42] During construction, a series of public open days for the Northbridge Tunnel were held, the first of which were in March 1998.[43][26][44] As the tunnel passed through Weld Square, two century-oldMoreton Bay figs and akurrajong tree were cut down. Six more century-old trees were relocated.[45] The location of the tunnel in the vicinity of the intersection of Newcastle Street and Beaufort Street was changed close to when construction began in that area, locating the tunnel further south, giving local businesses little notice before disruptions began.[46] As it was the most intricate part of the construction process, the intersection was closed in June 1998 and reopened in November 1998.[47] Breakthrough at the eastern end of the tunnel occurred in January 1999.[48][49]
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Earthworks for the bridge across the Swan River began in December 1997 and piling began in March 1998. The 403-metre (1,322 ft) bridge was constructed using theincremental launch method. The first of nineteen launches occurred in September 1998; the last launch took place in September 1999, by which point construction on the freeway was two months ahead of schedule.[50] In April 2000, the bridge was named the Windan Bridge, after the wife ofYellagonga, the chief of theMooro tribe of theWhadjukNoongar people in the 1830s. The bridge is located roughly on the site where Windan was buried.[51]
In October 1997, Transport MinisterEric Charlton announced that the City Northern Bypass would be named afterAustralian rules footballerGraham "Polly" Farmer, breaking the convention of freeways and highways in Western Australia being named after political figures. Farmer had played forEast Perth andWest Perth in theWest Australian Football League, akin to how the Northbridge Tunnel links West Perth and East Perth. He had also played forGeelong in theVictorian Football League.[52][53] A $72 million budget blowout was revealed in May 1998, taking the budget to $407 million. This was blamed on material cost escalation, Main Roads overhead that was not accounted for in the original budget, and scope increases such as the interchange at Great Eastern Highway and a video traffic monitoring system.[54] Charlton claimed that there was no cost blowout and that "everything is within expectations".[55] An opening ceremony for the Graham Farmer Freeway took place on 22 April 2000, featuring Polly Farmer. As part of the opening celebrations, the public were allowed to walk through the Northbridge Tunnel.[1][2] The freeway opened to traffic at 2:30 am on 24 April 2000.[56][57] The final cost was $374 million, after Main Roads overhead is removed.[2][58]
By October 2000, an average of 65,000 vehicles per day were using the Graham Farmer Freeway,[59] with a peak of 106,000 vehicles on 28 April.[60] Traffic onRiverside Drive had dropped from 50,000 vehicles per day before the freeway opened to 27,000 per day, and traffic onThe Causeway had dropped from 107,000 vehicles per day to 70,000 per day. Traffic had reduced onAdelaide Terrace,Shepperton Road and the Mitchell Freeway off-ramps toJames Street andCharles Street as well.[59][61] On the other hand, traffic along Whatley Crescent inMaylands had increased by 6,000 vehicles per day.[62] In May 2000, work commenced atThe Causeway on converting one lane in each direction to a bus lane.[63]
In February 2011,Main Roads Western Australia confirmed that it was investigating adding a third lane in each direction through the Northbridge Tunnel by subsuming the emergency stopping lane.[64] A project to add a third lane was officially confirmed in March 2012. Also included in the project was an additional lane along the Mitchell Freeway for 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) to Hutton Street, the widening of several bridges across the Mitchell Freeway, and the construction of an additional on-ramp from the Loftus Street exit from the tunnel. The project was deemed necessary in part due to the increase in traffic caused by the closure ofRiverside Drive for the construction ofElizabeth Quay. The total cost was $57 million.[65][66]
The lane addition was controversial due to the reduction in safety; in the weeks leading up to construction, the Victorian coroner,Jennifer Coate, released her report into the 2007Burnley Tunnel crash inMelbourne, which recommended that new tunnels have emergency lanes. PremierColin Barnett said that the tunnel was always built to have three lanes.[67][68] The third lane in the eastbound tunnel opened on 16 April 2013,[69] and in the westbound tunnel on 29 April 2013. A reduced speed limit was put in place for about a month to allow drivers to get used to the change.[70][71] By 2014, the rate of crashes in the tunnel was roughly the same as before the extra lanes were added, despite the extra traffic.[72] As of 2025, there are 120,310 vehicles per day through the Northbridge Tunnel, and 107,120 vehicles per day across the Windan Bridge.[73]
| LGA[7] | Location[7] | km | mi | Destinations[7] | Notes[7] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Perth,Vincent | West Perth | 0– 1.0 | 0.0– 0.62 |  Mitchell Freeway (State Route 2) –Joondalup,Perth CBD | Full Y-Interchange |
| 0.7 | 0.43 |  Loftus Street (State Route 61) –West Perth | Eastbound entrance and westbound exit only. | ||
| Northbridge | 1.0 | 0.62 | James Street – Northbridge | Westbound exit only | |
| Northbridge,Perth | 1.0– 2.6 | 0.62– 1.6 | Northbridge Tunnel | ||
| Perth | 2.6 | 1.6 |  Lord Street (State Route 51) –Perth CBD,Mount Lawley | Eastbound entrance and westbound exit only, via East Parade ramps. | |
| East Perth | 3.3 | 2.1 |  East Parade (State Route 66) –East Perth,Maylands | ||
| Perth,Vincent,Victoria Park | East Perth,Burswood | 3.7– 4.2 | 2.3– 2.6 | Windan Bridge | |
| Victoria Park | Burswood | 4.5– 5.0 | 2.8– 3.1 | Victoria Park Drive westbound / Seabiscuit Drive eastbound – Burswood | |
| Victoria Park,Belmont | Burswood,Lathlain,Rivervale | 6.4 | 4.0 |    Great Eastern Highway (National Highway 94 / National Route 1) – Midland,Fremantle,Perth Airport | Continues south-east asOrrong Road (State Route 8); Modified diamond interchange: additional north-westbound looped entrance ramp |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
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