Work on Sydney’s WestConnex project is in full swing, with the M4 widening and the upgrade of the King Georges Road interchange partially complete. These pictures, taken between May 2015 and September 2016 by aerial image provider Nearmap.com, show just how far along the project is.
M4 widening at Clyde
The first set of images shows part of the widening of the M4 Western Motorway at Clyde in Sydney’s west. The south-eastern corner of the Valvoline Speedway (formerly Sydney Speedway) can be seen at the top of the picture.
Extensive work is evident in the southern half of the images, as the M4 is widened from two or three lanes in each direction, to four permanent lanes in each direction between Parramatta and Homebush Bay Drive.
King Georges Road upgrade
The second set of pics gives us an overview of the King Georges Road interchange at Beverly Hills in Sydney’s south. The interchange has become a notorious bottleneck for Sydney traffic, with up to 50,000 motorists getting stuck there each day.
The upgrade involves widening and extending the eastbound on-ramp and westbound off-ramp between King Georges Road and the M5 East below it, increasing ramp length by 180 metres
The King Georges Road interchange upgrade is expected to be completed in early 2017.
The new M5 and Cooloongatta Road bridge
The last set of images shows a section of the existing M5 East at Beverly Hills just east of the King Georges Road interchange, where Cooloongatta Road crosses over.
Heavy work has been done on either side of the existing freeway as this section will form part of the ‘new M5’. To accommodate the wider road, the Cooloongatta Road bridge must be lengthened.