Heysen Tunnels Refit and Safety Upgrade

The Australian and South Australian governments have committed $150 million (80:20) to address current tunnel elements that are at the end of their service life, improve safety and provide improved traffic management and incident response capabilities.

Works include:

• upgrading the tunnel lighting system to a new LED configuration;
• installing a new automated fire suppression system;
• upgrading the tunnel ventilation system;
• repairing the tunnel lining and installing monitoring equipment;
• upgrading the Intelligent Transport System (ITS) equipment, including thermal incident detection systems, new and replacement Closed Circuit Television (CCTV), Lane Use Management Signs (LUMS), Variable Message Signage (VMS) and over height vehicle detection;
• upgrading the traffic management system to restrict access to the tunnels in the event of an emergency incident; and
• upgrading the emergency communication systems, including public address, radio rebroadcast, in-tunnel signage and help phones to improve safety and network reliability.

Current works

The majority of works will be undertaken Sunday to Thursday nights between 7pm and 6am. Some works may also occur on Friday or Saturday nights, or on public holidays. Advance notice of traffic impacts will be provided by on site messaging boards.

Project timing

Initial activities and tunnel lining repairs commenced on 19 March 2023.

We are currently testing and commissioning the new and upgraded tunnel equipment and are on track to finish major project works and remove associated traffic restrictions by the end of 2024.

We will need to return to the tunnels early next year for some final equipment testing, during which time some temporary traffic restrictions will be required.

Please click here to subscribe for updates or contact the project team via:

Email: DIT.engagement@sa.gov.au
Phone: 1300 794 880