Major work on South Australia's biggest infrastructure project is ramping up as the Torrens to Darlington project sets its sights on heading underground. South Road commuters are being warned to expect further delays but the government insists it'll be worth it with the tunnels expected to save up to 40 minutes travel time when complete.
00:00A new stage for a long-running project as major works ramp up on the Torrens to Darlington.
00:08This is the biggest infrastructure project in Australia right now.
00:12Boring the underground tunnels is the focus of this phase, but that won't happen until next year.
00:18The machines to do that have to be built first.
00:21The machines are 90 metres long and they're about five storeys high and they all come together like a Lego system almost.
00:30With a $15 billion price tag, the Premier says it's on track to open by 2031.
00:36Until then, South Road commuters will continue to face the challenge of roadworks.
00:42Of course there's going to be a degree of disruption, but we want to get things done.
00:46And we're not going to back away from making tough decisions that are required to set the state up for the long term.
00:52The SA Freight Council agrees and says it's an investment that will pay dividends.
00:57Businesses thrive because of their infrastructure, the ease of access, the parking.
01:02Something that makes it easy for their suppliers and their customers to get to.
01:06And this will actually provide that for those customers.
01:09More than 50,000 vehicles use South Road each day and along this section between West High Marsh and Darlington, the average speed is under 30 kilometres per hour.
01:20The government says once construction is complete, it'll take just nine minutes, a saving of between 30 and 40 minutes during peak hour.
01:2921 sets of traffic lights removed, 40 minutes off commute time and that means for people that's 40 minutes more you can spend with your families.
