Comments sought on Majura Parkway Draft EIS (closing 29 June 2009)

Comments sought on Majura Parkway Draft EIS (closing 29 June 2009)

Proposed Majura Parkway AlignmentPublic comment is now being invited on a draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a proposal to duplicate the Majura Road.

The document can also be downloaded at from the following ACTPLA webpage.

Alternatively you can purchase copies of the draft EIS from the ACT Planning and Land Authority at 16 Challis Street, Dickson. The cost (if purchased from the Customer Service Centre) is $0.30 per A4 page and $0.65 per A3 page. A full copy on CD can also be purchased for $5.50.

All submissions will be placed on a public register and a copy of each submission will be made available on the ACTPLA website. Comments should be received by 5.00pm Monday 29 June 2009.

Comments should be mailed to

The Applications Secretariat,
ACT Planning and Land Authority,
PO Box 365,
MITCHELL ACT 2911,

or can be made via email to app.sec@act.gov.au

3 Comments

  1. In a week when the Federal Government is proposing to subsidise fat people to join a gym I cannot understand how the ACT government could submit a road proposal that would significantly reduce the area available for citizens to engage in a free exercise activity, that of mountain biking in the Majura Pines.

    One of the proposed routes for the new dual carriageway bisects 30% of the Majura Pines cycling trails that have been developed over many years. The specific trails in the proposed excised area represent the flatter beginner trails where families get started in their enjoyment of the sport of mountain biking. The creation of new trails is not any easy task due to access, conservation and it’s labour intensive nature. Lost trails are never easily replaced, it took the bushfire disaster of 2003 to provide the opportunity to create the Stromlo Park multi user facility.

    Every effort should be made to retain existing trails and encourage their use. Some would look at Canberra and consider that the mountain biking community is well served thanks to the contribution of the Government. This is very true and much appreciated by all riders but a diversity of riding tracks is also important and mountain bikes will tell you that Majura Pines offers a different type of riding to that of Stromlo or Sparrow Hill, the other major local riding spots.

    I would offer the suggestion that the alignment of the proposed Majura Parkway be made further to the east in what is largely agricultural land and that the planned development should in fact incorporate safer access to the Majura Pines recreational area and the possible provision of some basic facilities for users – a gravel car parking area, a pair of eco-toilets and rubbish bins.

    I would also ask why the route of the existing road can’t be used and widened in the 2 km stretch that passes Majura Pines, that approach was successful for the Lake George where no alternative route was available during the extensive roadworks, at least with Majura Rd there exists two alternative routes in Northbourne/Federal Highway and Sutton Rd.

    At a time when the nation is pushing towards the top of the world obesity chart doesn’t the destruction of a free exercise area to make way for an easier road for cars seem a bit incongruous.

    Neal Williams
  2. $250m road planned to preserve historic sites
    BY MEGAN DOHERTY CITY REPORTER
    The Canberra Times: 4/06/2009

    The $250 million Majura Parkway was a vital piece of infrastructure for the ACT, Chief Minister Jon Stanhope said yesterday.
    A draft environmental impact statement has been released for the proposed 11.5km four-lane road which would run west of Majura Road and connect the Federal and Monaro highways as a freight corridor and quick north-south route.

    Mr Stanhope said the proposed route did have some environmental impacts.

    But it had already been realigned to avoid some important heritage locations, including the Woolshed Creek fossil site on Fairbairn Avenue which contained the first Silurian age fossils discovered in Australia and the Narrabundah Ashtone formation, also in the Fairbairn Avenue area, which showed evidence of early volcanic activity in the Canberra region.

    Planning Minister Andrew Barr will ultimately receive a recommendation from the ACT Planning and Land Authority on whether the environmental impact statement has addressed all the issues.

    Mr Stanhope, as Minister for Territory and Municipal Services, is responsible for Roads ACT which is proposing the parkway.


    Note: copyright of the material in this clipping resides with Fairfax Media. Usage permitted in accordance with the Australian Copyright Act 1968, Section 42: Fair dealing for purpose of reporting news. Source: The Canberra Times

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