The section of Chief Street between Port Road and Hawker Street is due to be upgraded and will undergo a full reconstruction in 2025/26.
Work is continuing to finalise the detailed engineering design over the coming months followed by the initial works to underground the first stage of powerlines funded between the railway underpass to south of Ethelbert Square.
The final design is a result of community consultation in 2019/20 where we wanted to understand what already worked well, what doesn’t work and how those who use Chief Street imagine it in the future and guided by further discussions in 2021 where we presented three streetscape options to the community for feedback. The final streetscape design features an off-road bike path on the eastern side with a footpath adjacent a bicycle path (instead of a shared use path) to reduce pedestrian-cyclist conflict and parking on the eastern side. You can see the illustrated design here.
An update has been provided to the local community surrounding Chief Street, you can read this update on our Chief Street Upgrade project page. Further updates will be provided following the finalised detailed design later this year.
For more information on community consultation to date, please visit our dedicated community engagement site Your Say Charles Sturt.
We commenced consultation in 2019/20.
To read more about all the consultation to date, visit our dedicated community engagement site Your Say Charles Sturt.
We have been working with the Powerline Environment Committee (PLEC) to fund the undergrounding of power. In October 2022 we were successful in obtaining funding to underground powerlines between the railway underpass to south of Ethelbert Square on Chief Street. We are continuing to work with PLEC and expect to also be successful in obtaining funding to underground powerlines along the section of Chief Street between Ethelbert Square and Hawker Street later this calendar year.
The former gasworks site (adjacent Chief Street) is currently undergoing soil remediation works which is anticipated to have timing impacts to the civil construction of Chief Street. To avoid any potential conflicts with the gasworks site and our streetscape upgrade, construction has now been programmed for the 2025/26 financial year.
Further information about our construction timing will be provided closer to the time we commence.