A major section of the Great Western Highway has opened to traffic at the foot of the Blue Mountains, marking a significant milestone in improving the connection between Sydney and the Central West.
The $232 million Coxs River Road Upgrade at Hartley was officially switched over to traffic early this morning, with vehicles now travelling along the new 2.4-kilometre four-lane alignment. Jointly funded by the Albanese and Minns Labor governments, the project is designed to deliver safer, more efficient journeys for locals, tourists and freight operators.
Minister for Roads, Jenny Aitchison, said the new stretch of highway would ease congestion and improve safety on this key regional corridor.
“This upgrade will help improve safety and cut congestion for motorists along a key regional route,” she said. “I’d like to thank local businesses and community members for their patience as this upgrade work was carried out.”
A standout feature of the project is the new 70-metre-long bridge that carries local traffic safely over the highway via Coxs River Road. Constructed using locally sourced materials—including concrete from Lithgow and quarry materials from Oberon—the bridge rests on 14 precast Super T girders, each stretching 34 metres and weighing 60 tonnes.
Ms Aitchison also acknowledged the contribution of the more than 530 workers who brought the project to life, noting the value of local participation.
“They’ve done a fantastic job and I was very happy to hear 30 per cent of the workforce came from local communities,” she said. “The Minns Labor Government is proud to be working with the Albanese Labor Government to deliver improvements along the Great Western Highway corridor, including our upgrade at Medlow Bath and other targeted safety improvements.”
NSW Labor’s Bathurst spokesperson, Stephen Lawrence MLC, praised the dedication of workers involved in the build.
“The new highway alignment at Little Hartley is a credit to the workers who helped build it,” he said. “This project was delivered in sometimes challenging conditions, with crews laying over 67,000 tonnes of asphalt despite losing about 15 weeks to poor weather since construction started.”
Construction also included a realignment of the old highway to form a service road for local businesses, upgraded junctions at Browns Gap Road, Coxs River Road and Ambermere Drive, and a new U-turn bay at Baaners Lane. Landscaping and construction of a shared path along the old highway are expected to continue for several more months.
While the opening of this section is a major step forward, further upgrades along the Great Western Highway corridor will be needed to realise the full benefit of this investment and to deliver a more seamless connection through the mountains.
The highway duplication projects prior to Katoomba and the works on Victoria pass currently underway will further enhance this journey, however without a tunnel connecting all the pieces together, motorists will still face delays during peak holiday times.
