Skip to main content

GRAA focuses on winning project profile: Brisbane Airport Link, Northern Busway & Airport

The revolutionary AUD$4.8 billion Airport Link has delivered a landmark infrastructure project for Australia, tackling traffic congestion, enhancing the busway network and removing an infamous traffic bottleneck through an innovative and inspired design. The Airport Link in Brisbane, Australia included three separate projects – the Northern Busway (a 3km two-way dedicated busway), the Airport Roundabout Upgrade and the AirportlinkM7 (a 6.7km toll road including 5.2km of tunnel). Together, they represent the
May 19, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
Parsons Brinckerhoff and Arup joint venture won the 2013 GRAA for Design
RSSThe revolutionary AUD$4.8 billion Airport Link has delivered a landmark infrastructure project for Australia, tackling traffic congestion, enhancing the busway network and removing an infamous traffic bottleneck through an innovative and inspired design.

The Airport Link in Brisbane, Australia included three separate projects – the Northern Busway (a 3km two-way dedicated busway), the Airport Roundabout Upgrade and the AirportlinkM7 (a 6.7km toll road including 5.2km of tunnel). Together, they represent the largest single investment in transport infrastructure ever undertaken in Australia. The project was delivered by the 2642 Thiess 4755 John Holland (TJH) joint venture with 2693 Parsons Brinckerhoff and 1419 Arup joint venture as the lead design partner, for the Queensland Government-appointed 2641 BrisConnections.

Parsons Brinckerhoff and Arup joined forces – as PBA – to provide technical input into the tender and to deliver the detailed design and construction phase services support. PBA engaged more than 1,000 staff, who worked more than one million hours from start-up in 2006 through to completion in July 2012. During that time PBA delivered more than 18,000 ‘for construction’ drawings in 600 packages with a Total of 3,600 submission cycles.

Aside from 15km of tunnel, the scheme boasts 25 bridges, 15 cut and cover structures, 8.5km of roadway, bicycle paths, 3.5ha of new parklands, more than one million new plants, three ventilation stations, and an operations control building.

The scale and complexity of the project, along with very tight constraints imposed by a highly-populated environment and the need to keep roads open, presented a formidable design challenge. These challenges required a range of technical innovations including underground road interchanges in caverns, the largest of which was 28m wide, and an innovative multilevel flyover with a fast-diamond interchange.

PBA’s scope of works included tunnel, road, geotechnical, electrical and mechanical, fire and life safety, structural and civil works design, as well as coordinating the urban design via subcontracted resources.

2014 GRAA Applications
The Global Road Achievement Awards (GRAA) is a one-of-a-kind competition to recognise innovative road projects and exemplary people that place the road industry at the forefront of worldwide social and economic development.
ENTRIES SHOULD BE SUBMITTED BY JUNE 30, 2014. More information at: www.irfnews.org/graa


For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Building New zealand's landmark tunnel
    February 15, 2012
    A landmark tunnelling project is commencing in New Zealand - Kristina Smith reports. New Zealand is preparing to embark on its biggest transport project ever. In August it announced that it had selected its preferred bidder for the NZ$1.4 billion Waterview Connection in Auckland, 5km of new motorway connecting highways to the North and South of the city.
  • Sandvik tunnelling equipment boosts Sochi 2014
    August 28, 2013
    Sandvik Construction is among leading equipment manufacturers playing a key role in building a network of road and rail tunnels on one new and one existing transport route in and around the Russian coastal city of Sochi as part of a US$47.75 billion investment in preparations for the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics. Guy Woodford reports Sandvik Construction’s tunnelling equipment team in Russia have been very much in demand over the past three years. Since 2010, they have been overseeing the seven Russian c
  • IRF Announces Winners of 2017 Global Road Achievement Awards
    February 8, 2018
    The International Road Federation has announced the winners of the 2017 IRF Global Road Achievement Awards at the closing of the IRF Middle East & North Africa Regional Congress & Exhibition. This year, the IRF honours 11 projects from around the world, each leading the way in innovation across major road and highway disciplines. The selection was made by an international panel of senior road development specialists.
  • Australian road developments in Queensland and NSW
    January 19, 2023
    Key Australian road developments are planned in Queensland and NSW.