Tuesday, 24 September 2024
Austroads has updated all parts of the Guide to Road Tunnels to include guidance on how to achieve more sustainable outcomes at each stage throughout the life cycle of tunnels.
“Every state and territory in Australia, as well as New Zealand, has committed to net zero emissions by 2050. In this context, responsible organisations have an obligation to reduce the sustainability impacts of delivering and operating road tunnels whose asset life is expected to extend beyond 2050. The new information in the Guide will provide operators, designers and those constructing tunnels with contemporary advice on how they can address issues related to the social, economic and environmental pillars of sustainability,” said Ross Guppy, Austroads Transport Infrastructure Program Manager.
A significant upgrade was made to Part 1 of the Guide focusing on introducing sustainable practices to improve the quality of the environment and life for future generations. The new Part 1 defines sustainability, states its importance in the development of a tunnel and provides a general approach to its implementation.
Parts 2, 3 and 4 provide specific guidance on the achievement of sustainability in the various stages from concept development to operation and maintenance of tunnels with cross-references to the introductory material in Part 1.
- Part 1: Introduction to Road Tunnels provides a general introduction to road tunnels.
- Part 2: Planning, Design and Commissioning sets out the benchmark standards for planning, design and commissioning of road tunnels.
- Part 3: Operations and Maintenance provides the benchmark standards to be applied to the operation and maintenance of road tunnels in Australia and New Zealand.
- Part 4: Retrofitting Tunnels sets out the approach to be taken when upgrading, refurbishing or retrofitting existing road tunnels.
The technical report Sustainability in Road Tunnels: Updating the Guide to Road Tunnels details the basis of the changes to the Guides.
On Thursday Austroads will host an international workshop on “Lifecycle Interventions to Lift Road Tunnel Sustainability”, in collaboration with PIARC, the World Road Association and Transport for New South Wales.