We consulted with our community in 2018/19 on the Military Road and Main Street Streetscape Project and developed the final concept plan, which was endorsed by Council on 26 August 2019, subject to:

1. a median island on Military Road being included to prevent right turns at the York Street intersection, and

2. further analysis of the operation of the intersection of North Street and Military Road and South Street and Military Road for discussion with the community and Ward Councillors.

As part of the concept design stage, we have addressed and included the median to prevent right turns at the York Street intersection.

During the second round of community consultation, we heard some concerns from the community about the removal of the roundabouts. Primary concerns were that drivers would find it difficult to turn from North Street or South Street to Military Road. Some concerns were also raised about crashes and speed at the intersections.

With regard to vehicle crashes and speeds, standard roundabouts and raised intersections perform similarly. A raised intersection is a plateau that slows drivers and has an advisory 20km/h speed sign. Standard Give Way signs would be installed. Both treatments slow drivers, reducing the chance of a casualty or fatality resulting from any crash that might occur. The benefit of the raised intersection over a standard roundabout is that it increases safety for pedestrians, as drivers are looking both ways and pedestrians have right of way over a driver turning into the street they are crossing (under the Australian Road Rules). This pedestrian priority does not exist at roundabouts.

With regard to drivers finding it difficult to turn right from North Street or South Street to Military Road, we have undertaken traffic counts and modelling to compare the existing roundabouts with the proposed raised intersections. It found that, from a driver's perspective, the raised intersections improve the overall intersection performance for all peak traffic times, but with a minor reduction in the level of service for traffic on North Street and South Street. In the worst-case scenario, the average extra delay to a driver turning right from North Street to Military Road in the Saturday peak is 11.4 seconds with a raised intersection.

Consultation was open for 3 weeks from 23 March to 14 April 2020. We engaged with over 1600 local residents and business owners within the consultation area. A snapshot of the feedback received is available in this infographic for your reference.

Given the overwhelming support for Option 2, pedestrian priority roundabouts, we have now designed these at both intersections. Construction of the project is planned to begin in early 2021.

For all additional information about the North and South Intersection consultation you can visit

https://www.yoursaycharlessturt.com.au/northandsouthstreet-intersectionchanges