Penrith City Council is improving the safety and efficiency of Coreen Avenue by delivering a series of intersection upgrades between Castlereagh Road and Lemongrove Road.

The four intersection upgrades aim to relieve congestion and make it safer to travel through intersections on Coreen Avenue, especially during peak periods, as well as ensure the road can cater for future traffic demands.

A detailed design has been prepared based on community feedback, further site investigations and updated traffic modelling. Several changes have been made to the earlier draft design to address concerns raised.

The intersection upgrades will change the way motorists access and use Coreen Avenue, however journeys on this road will become safer, quicker and more reliable.

Penrith is undergoing significant growth with more people choosing to live, work and study in Penrith. This growth is putting additional pressure on the local road network, and traffic delays are becoming more infrequent.

A transport study commissioned by Penrith City Council highlighted issues with Coreen Avenue with intersections not performing at an acceptable Level of Service for current usage and indicating they would deteriorate further by 2036.

The Coreen Avenue Intersection Upgrades project aims to reduce queuing traffic and waiting time at intersections. It will also improve connectivity between Castlereagh Road and the Northern Road (Parker Street).

Funding to deliver the $13.2 million intersection upgrades was secured in the fourth round of the Australian Governments Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan (WSIP) – Local Roads Package (LRP).

The purpose of the WSIP is to provide better road linkages within Western Sydney to benefit the region's growing population. The LRP is a key component of the WSIP to enable Western Sydney councils to complete minor road improvement works in the Western Sydney area.

Several factors have contributed to the reduced scope. Rising construction costs have put significant pressure on the available budget. The budget has also been impacted by redesign efforts, following community consultation, and additional site investigations.

As a result, the revised scope includes upgrades to four intersections instead of the six originally proposed in the draft design. This decision was guided by the budget, along with community feedback, site investigations and updated traffic modelling.

Upgrades will proceed at the following intersections:

• Coreen Avenue/Coombes Drive (west)
• Coreen Avenue/Combewood Avenue
• Coreen Avenue/Coombes Drive (east)
• Coreen Avenue/Lemongrove Road

As an ancillary project, the intersection of Coombes Drive and Hickeys Road will also have minor upgrades.

Upgrades will not proceed at this time for the:

• Coreen Avenue / Sydney Smith Drive intersection
• Coreen Avenue / Bel-Air Road intersection

Council has worked extensively over the past 18 months to explore alternative solutions and investigate all options to resolve the concerns raised by businesses during community consultation.

While Council has been able to make some significant design modifications to address most of the concerns raised by businesses, some of the issues raised by businesses could not be fully resolved despite best efforts.

The introduction of traffic signals at Coombes Drive (west) was a fundamental element, and we acknowledge that to provide this facility has required changes to the access at Combewood; these changes are unavoidable given the proximity of the two intersections. We understand this will result in changes to the way residents, businesses and commuters access Thornton. Further modelling is being undertaken to understand this further and identify further improvements where possible to minimise impacts.

Council remains committed to keeping the community informed and to working closely with businesses and property owners to understand the design, and how the changes will affect them.

A detailed design has been prepared based on community feedback, further site investigations and updated traffic modelling. Several changes have been made to the earlier draft design to address the concerns raised.

Coombes Drive (east)

Council has listened to the concerns raised about turning movements at the Coombes Drive (east) intersection and has changed the design to allow left in/left out movements and right turn in from Coreen Avenue. The detailed design retains the no right turn out of Coombes Drive for safety reasons.

Lemongrove Road

Council has listened to the concerns raised about pedestrian safety at this intersection and will install a safety barrier at the corner of Robert Street and Lemongrove Road to protect pedestrians, residents and motorists.

Sydney Smith Drive and Bel-Air Road

A detailed design for these upgrades has been developed however, due to budget constraints, an upgrade to both the Sydney Smith Drive and Bel-Air Road intersections will not be pursued at this time.

The current two-lane model on Coreen Avenue, with one traffic lane and one parking lane in each direction, has been assessed as unsuitable and unsustainable for current and future traffic volumes.

The intersection upgrades require sections of the parking lane on Coreen Avenue and Coombes Drive to be removed to facilitate a dual carriageway on approach to upgraded intersections. This will reduce the number of parking spaces available.

Council understands that parking is a concern for residents and businesses, however some changes to parking are necessary to achieve the required improvements to traffic flow on Coreen Avenue.

Sections of the parking lane on Coreen Avenue, and a small section on Coombes Drive, will be removed to enable the four-lane carriageway on approach to the upgraded intersections.

Most of the parking loss will occur between Castlereagh Road and Coombes Drive (west) with the removal of the parking lane on both sides of the road. There is also some minor parking loss on Coreen Avenue at Combewood Avenue, Coombes Drive (east) and Lemongrove Road.

When main roads are upgraded and new lanes are added, it’s important for safety and efficiency to restrict where cars can turn right (across multiple lanes) and turn into or out of side roads.

The design for the upgrade proposes access changes into Coreen Avenue from Coombes Drive, as well as into Combewood Avenue. These access changes have been proposed to ensure the safety of all motorists and to ensure traffic flows smoothly during peak periods.

A detailed design for the four intersection upgrades has been prepared. The design is informed by community feedback, site and technical investigations, traffic modelling and the budget.

A Review of Environmental Factors is being finalised and will be exhibited for public feedback in mid-2025. The detailed design will be shared with the community at the same time.

A tender process is likely to start in late 2025, and a contractor is expected to be appointed in early 2026. Construction is expected to start in mid-2026 and be complete by mid-2027 (weather dependent).

Council has prepared a Review of Environmental Factors (REF) for this project. This document outlines the potential environmental impacts of the project and the measures in place to mitigate them.

The REF will be placed on public exhibition for the community to review and provide feedback on in mid-2025. All feedback will be considered and will assist in the delivery of the project.