The new $16.7 million bridge linking Treendale with Eaton is now open, reducing travel time and increasing safety for the fast-growing communities.
The bridge is located about three kilometres north-east of the Eaton Fair Shopping Centre and approximately 1.5 kilometres south of the Treendale Shopping Centre.
Spanning 224 metres long, the new bridge will halve the journey time between the two communities from 20 minutes to about 10 minutes.
Along with providing an important social connection, the bridge will provide essential access for emergency services vehicles and will connect the Treendale and Kingston subdivisions in Australind with Millbridge Private Estate and the Parkridge Estate in Eaton.
The project was jointly funded, with the State Government contributing $9.5 million and the shires of Dardanup and Harvey committing $7.2 million collected from developer contributions.
An innovative and successful bridge launch method has delivered cost and time savings to this project. Features of the 14.4 metre-wide bridge include a steel/concrete composite superstructure that accommodates two traffic lanes, a pedestrian walkway on the western side and bridge lighting.
Possum ropes will also be installed on both sides of the Collie River channel to facilitate possum movements along the watercourse.
Work on the structure started in early 2017 and generated up to 100 jobs during its peak construction period, including various local sub-contractors and businesses. The steel components of the beams for the bridge were also fabricated in Western Australia.
Photo: Bridge over Collie River during construction (Mainroads WA)