- Project: Connolly Dam Road Culvert Replacement
- Value: $400,000
- Client: Southerns Downs Regional Council
- Client Contact: James Varughese
- Duration: 3 Months
- Team: Luke Hart
Southern Downs Regional Council received funding support to replace a culvert on Connolly Dam Road at Silverwood.
This road provides access to Connolly Dam and neighbouring rural properties. The existing crossing of a tributary to Rosenthal Creek consisted of (2/2200 x 1680 RCBC) located approximately 6km from the intersection with Rosenthal Road.
In accordance with the culvert condition report, the existing structure was generally in a very poor condition, with severe defects evident at the time of the inspection that reduced the capacity and serviceable life of the culvert. During the initial inspections it was identified that the crossing was an amber fish passage.
HARO Civil Engineering were engaged to design the replacement of the culvert with a 2/2100×2100 RCBC structure and widen existing roadway to allow for two-lane operation.
Alternate horizontal alignment solutions were investigated however there is no scope to improve the existing road horizontal geometry alignment to meet with current standards. Therefore, the methodology adopted for the design was to rotate the existing road cross fall from start to finish to ensure there was no aquaplaning issues and to tie in neatly with the existing superelevation values.
The proposed culvert replacement design incorporated the requirements of amber mapped waterways, with reference to TMR Standard Drawing SD 1271 and “Accepted development requirements for operational works that is constructing or raising waterway barrier works” (ADR). Council accepted the design and completed works in 2022.
The Southern Downs region offers an outstanding mix of investment and business opportunities, industrial and rural locations, and a relaxed country lifestyle.
Located around two hours from both Brisbane and the Gold Coast, the Southern Downs is a location of choice for business, investment, and employment. The Southern Downs’ low set-up costs and overheads make the region a highly cost-effective location to start or grow a business. Relative to other regions in Southeast Queensland, the Southern Downs regional economy has competitive strengths in agriculture, food product manufacturing and transport/logistics.
