Bunbury Outer Ring Road

July Project Update

We are currently constructing a diversion road at Raymond Road to enable the interchange construction. At the Raymond Road interchange, we are continuing with topsoil stockpiling heading north from Raymond Road up towards the Paris/Clifton interchange. Other works include the establishment of limestone foundations and the development of all-weather access tracks.

We also launched the Aboriginal Business Develoment Initiative to give local Aboriginal businesses the opportunity to grow their business through partnership on this project. We held another round of Business Briefings and will soon be releasing a community survey to gather feedback on the Urban Design and Landscaping themes on BORR. For more information about the latest project activities, view the July Project Update (PDF, 1.07 MB). 

The BORR Employment Portal is live

We have now launched our centralised employer and jobseeker platform – BORR Jobs! This platform is the gateway to job opportunities and recruitment on the Bunbury Outer Ring Road (BORR) project.

As a jobseeker, BORR Jobs will link you with job vacancies and training programs from employers and local training organisations, giving you the full visibility over opportunities to get involved in the project. You can upload your CV for potential employers to view, receive notifications on new job listings and search all jobs relating to BORR.

As an employer, you can advertise roles, aggregate roles from other platforms (excluding SEEK), manage and view applications, as well as promote your business. If you’re a local business looking to expand your team, BORR Jobs can help you find the right candidates.

Over the life of the project, the South West Gateway Alliance, in partnership with Main Roads, aims to spend over $300m with local businesses, including over $20m with Aboriginal businesses, and employ over 60 Aboriginal full-time equivalent employees.

Visit www.BORRJobs.com.au to find out more and create your jobseeker or employer profile today.

Need some help?

You can view our how-to guides below.

• BORR Jobs – Job Seeker Guide (PDF, 1.4 MB)
• BORR Jobs – Employer Guide (PDF, 1.83 MB)

Property condition reports

We recently offered property condition surveys to homes located within 100-150 meters of our project boundary in the northern and central sections. If your home is located within this area, you will receive a notification in the mail with an offer for us to complete a survey at no cost to you.

A few important things to note about property condition surveys include:

• It is not essential you receive a property condition survey however they are carried out to protect you in the rare case that there is damage to your home as a result of construction.
• Property condition surveys are paid for by the South West Gateway Alliance and come at no cost to you.
• The survey will involve photographs being taken at your property focussing on existing cracks and damage caused by the natural settling of your home over time.

If you have received a letter and want to verify its authenticity, or you would like more information, call us on 138 138, or email enquiries@mainroads.wa.gov.au.

• April 2018: Project planning study began
• June 2019: Environmental referral - Northern section
• September 2019: Environmental referral - Southern section
• February 2020: Project planning study completed
• Late 2020: Contract award
• 2021: Construction starts (once all approvals in place)
• Early 2024: Construction complete

Dates subject to change

Bunbury Outer Ring Road will improve access to Bunbury Port as well as existing and proposed industrial areas east of Bunbury.

A new free-flowing, rural freeway-standard road will:

• improve freight efficiency
• create a safer road system by removing a significant number of trucks from local roads
• reduce local congestion and create more reliable journey times for all road users
• add sustainable infrastructure to support Greater Bunbury’s position as an industrial hub for the South West Region
• generate long term job opportunities for locals
• reduce travel time between the north and south of Bunbury by up to 15 minutes
• allow vehicles travelling between Bussell Highway and Forrest Highway to avoid 13 sets of traffic lights and one rail level crossing

Other benefits include:

• extending the service life of existing arterial roads, currently used by trucks, minimising future local upgrade treatments required
• reducing the need for heavy vehicles to mix with local traffic on local roads by redirecting between 10,000 and 15,000 vehicles a day onto the new road

We employed the services of KPMG to quantify the project’s direct contribution to the South West region’s economy, find out more by reading their Local Economic Impacts Summary (PDF, 606 KB).

Large infrastructure projects, like Bunbury Outer Ring Road, have significant ability to influence economic, environmental, social and governance outcomes and values, from a local to national scale.

When planning for new road projects, it’s important to consider and identify opportunities and potential impacts prior to design and construction. The ability to influence sustainability outcomes may become more limited in some aspects at this stage.

Continuing work first undertaken during planning and development, we are integrating a number of sustainability commitments through the design and construction phases of BORR. Some of these commitments include:

Employment, training, and local business

• Spending $300 million with local South West businesses
• Spending $20 million with Aboriginal businesses
• Employing 60+ Aboriginal full-time equivalent employees for the life of the project
• Creating sustainable workforces for local businesses
• Offering training and upskilling the unemployed and job transitioning community
• Collaborating with TAFE and other local training organisations
• Providing internal mentorship opportunities for future female leaders

Construction

• Minimising waste generation and maximising reuse and recycling by using products such as crushed recycled concrete, crumbed rubber, and crushed glass to develop road surfacing, pavements and road fill
• Sourcing materials from local businesses to reduce transport distances and emissions
• Utilising local recycling facilities in close proximity to the project for construction waste where possible, reducing emissions and building capacity for the local industry and market
• Seeking to use renewable energy options when sourcing construction equipment

Image: Truck unloading material 

Environment

• Reducing clearing of native vegetation and fauna habitat, with particular focus on high value areas, and seeking to improve ecological outcomes
• Salvaging valuable vegetation from areas to be cleared such as orchids, grass trees and zamia palms
• Constructing fauna underpasses and overpasses in line with environmental regulators’ requirements that cannot be used by vehicles and offer shelter to possums from predators and allow for dense vegetation planting
• Ensuring that path locations, and landscape designs, maximise the retention of trees
• Developing an access strategy for vegetation and asset maintenance
• Removing redundant pavement following construction and revegetating the land, or integrating it with the surrounding landscape treatment

Aboriginal Heritage and Culture

• Working closely with Aboriginal heritage monitors to identify significant areas or items and promote heritage values
• Creating urban design outcomes that include significant Aboriginal cultural components, such as integrated artwork, interpretive signage, naming of project aspects, trails and nodes
• Inviting Traditional Owner representatives to review and provide comments on the strategy, artist briefs, concept design and developed design stages of the artwork.

For all feedback and queries relating to Aboriginal Heritage and Culture on the project, please call 138 138 or email enquiries@mainroads.wa.gov.au



Image: Heritage monitors

Design

• Embracing technology to make roads safer and more efficient
• Maximising network efficiency for all road users (vehicles, freight, cyclists, and pedestrians) and encouraging active transport
• Incorporating gateway entrance statements to promote tourism in Bunbury and other local areas.
• Providing lighting that provides wayfinding and visual connectivity to the City of Bunbury
• Using colours on feature elements, aesthetic treatments and bridge structures which reflect local themes as well as provide visual connections to the Bunbury City and Port.
• Permanent lighting to be energy efficient LEDOptimising design to reduce the use of materials and resources such as imported fill, concrete, steel and water

Social

• Engaging with local primary and high schools to promote careers in the STEM industries
• Giving community members the opportunity to engage while we develop Urban Design and Landscaping choices on the project
• Consulting with local government on local road access and with residents when this access may change

Image: People attending a Community Hub

We will keep the community updated as progress is made on these sustainability goals. To view the full list of sustainability commitments for the project, access our Bunbury Outer Ring Road Sustainability Targets Register, approved by the Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia.  

Subscribe for updates or join our Community Facebook Group to stay informed.

How do I become involved in the delivery phase?

We will continue to involve the local communities, particularly in areas where construction may have an impact.

Subscribe to our mailing list now. From time to time, we will send updates and opportunities to be involved via this list.

You can call 138 138 or email enquiries@mainroads.wa.gov.au to ask a question or make a comment.

As we continue preparing work packages, we may invite community representatives to nominate for construction reference groups. If so, we will call nominations via local media and the subscriber mailing list.

What is the best way to keep up-to-date?

Subscribe to the email mailing list to receive regular project updates. Be the first to know about upcoming information sessions, opportunities and project updates.

This project page will be continually updated with information, pictures and videos of progress as we build Bunbury Outer Ring Road.

What if I have a question that is not answered here?

You can contact us with any questions by calling 138 138 and asking to speak to someone about the Bunbury Outer Ring Road. Alternatively, you can send your question via email to the project team at enquiries@mainroads.wa.gov.au.

Will the project include a Principal Shared Path?

An ultimate design was prepared as part of project development, which included a fully grade separated Principal Shared Path (PSP) along the entire length of the project. Costs and scope of works are being finalised, and we are now undertaking a review to determine the optimum network to be built as part of the project that will also allow the ultimate PSP to be built in future when required by path use from increasing population in the area.

The cycling network review will include consultation with a range of stakeholders and take into account current and future planned path networks for the Greater Bunbury area. The outcome of the review will ensure that the cycling and pedestrian infrastructure delivered during the project will be attractive to path users and provide functional connections to the existing network, while representing value for money to the community.

• View the full list of Frequently Asked Questions document. 
• View the Southern Section Frequently Asked Questions document.
• Learn more about Environment Frequently Asked Questions on the Environment page.

Project and construction updates

• Project Update - July 2021 - PDF (1.07 MB)
• Project Update - May 2021 - PDF (1.31 MB)
• Project Update - April 2021 - PDF (1.59 MB)
• Project Update - March 2021 - PDF (1.26 MB)
• Project Update - February 2021 - PDF (1 MB)
• Project Update - August 2020 - PDF (457 KB)

Check out the latest project video

Media Statements

• Biggest ever South-West road project now underway, unlocking thousands of local jobs - 29 January 2021
• Bunbury Outer Ring Road contract to create thousands of local jobs - 12 October 2020
• Preferred proponent chosen for $852 million Bunbury Outer Ring Road project - 4 August 2020
• Contract awarded for early planting to support Bunbury Outer Ring Road  - 30 April 2020
• Two consortia shortlisted to build Bunbury Outer Ring Road - 17 March 2020
• More local connections for Bunbury Outer Ring Road  - 19 December 2019
• Infrastructure to boost jobs and bust congestion  - 20 November 2019
• Expressions of interest called for Bunbury Outer Ring Road  - 10 September 2019
• Preferred alignment chosen for Bunbury Outer Ring Road  - 4 June 2019
• McGowan Government's record regional road budget continues  - 9 May 2019
• State Government welcomes Federal Government's final quarter effort on transport  – 28 March 2019
• Wanju and Waterloo plans re-released for public comment  – 12 March 2019
• Minister welcomes additional Bunbury Outer Ring Road funds  - 27 April 2018

Funding

In November 2019, the Federal government announced a boost to infrastructure funding including $283.6 million of funding being brought forward to the 2019—2020 financial year.

The Australian Government contribution to the project is $681.6 million and the Western Australian Government contribution to the project is $170.4 million bringing the total project budget to $852 million.

In April 2020, the process for the awarding of contracts for transport construction projects including Bunbury Outer Ring Road was streamlined to create more opportunities for local businesses and to protect local jobs.