Work on the long-awaited upgrade to the entrance to Glenbrook is about to start.
Member for Penrith, Stuart Ayres, was in Glenbrook on Friday announcing works, which are due to start on May 18.
Traffic lights will be installed at Ross Street, and the right turn bays on the Great Western Highway entering Hare Street and Ross Street will be extended.
Hare Street, between Wascoe Street and the Great Western Highway, will be closed to general traffic once the Ross Street lights are switched on, but emergency vehicles will still be able to access the highway from Hare Street with the use of a mountable kerb.
To begin with, the corner of Ross Street and the highway will be demolished, and the highway will be widened, temporarily moving the bus stop on the west-bound side of the highway into Glenbrook town centre.
“Glenbrook will have a much more formal entry which is more consistent with a highway village at the entrance to the Blue Mountains,” Mr Ayres said.
The RMS has said there will be no lane closures during daylight hours, with minimal traffic disruption expected during the day. Some nightworks are also planned.
The upgrade is expected to be completed by December.
The upgrade is not without controversy. It was not Blue Mountains City Council’s preferred design option.
While the council supports the introduction of traffic lights at the intersection of Ross Street and the highway, it has opposed plans to close access to Glenbrook village centre from the current intersection at Wascoe Street and Mann/Hare Street. It wanted to allow ‘left in’ and ‘left out’ movements at the Great Western Highway intersection with Hare Street.
The council has also claimed closing access from Hare Street would see traffic snarls in Glenbrook town centre.
Karen McKeown, the Labor candidate for the seat of Penrith in the 2019 state election, said “the permanent closure of Hare St between Wascoe and the Great Western Highway is not the best solution.”
“This is a prime example of the state government not listening to the local residents or businesses. Council, who unlike the government consulted widely with the community and put forward their preferred option, have been ignored.”
