The Mitchell light rail stop is expected to be completed by the middle of 2021. Photo: File.
A light rail stop at Mitchell is a step closer with the lodging of plans for the $900,000 project.
The 14th station on the Stage 1 route will be sited on Flemington Road at the intersection with Sandford Street and will service the Mitchell business precinct.
The island stop between the existing rail tracks will match the design of other stops on the Gungahlin-to-City line.
Passengers will access the stop via the existing pedestrian crossings across Flemington Road at the intersection.
The construction of Stage 1 allowed space for a future station to be built at Mitchell so this project will involve the removal of landscaped areas, erection of a largely prefabricated stop structure, and connection to the existing conduits and services.
The platform will have enough space for a potential future extension to suit a 45-metre light rail vehicle (LRV) if required. Current LRVs are 33 metres.
Construction is expected to start by the end of the year, coinciding with the holiday period to take advantage of reduced traffic, and will take about seven months to complete.
Funding for the project came through in June 2020 as part of a joint Commonwealth-ACT infrastructure announcement.
Mitchell traders, whose businesses suffered throughout the light rail construction period, lobbied hard for the stop to be added to the route.
In June, Mitchell Traders Association president Michael Warnock said the Mitchell stop is well overdue and should have been included in Stage 1 of the light rail project.
He said the planned Sandford Street stop would reduce parking pressures in Mitchell, boost business and provide greater access to the city.
“For people coming in, it was quite a long walk either from Old Well Station Road or from EPIC, which is where most people seem to come from,” said Mr Warnock. “It will be great to have that access at long last.
“We had to be patient, had to wait, but they have been true to their word. They did say they would do it before Stage 2A [from the city to Commonwealth Park].”
ACT Minister for Transport Chris Steel said the new stop would provide better access to the Mitchell business district in addition to the existing stop at Well Station Drive.
A construction compound will be established on Randwick Road in Lyneham, and a traffic management plan will be in place.
Original Article published by Ian Bushnell on The RiotACT.
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