In April 2022, Transurban relocated our M5 East motorway operations centre to our new St Peters motorway control centre, marking the first step towards consolidating our traffic control room operations.
From 2023, our St Peters control centre will coordinate critical incidents, maintenance, and network-wide traffic monitoring for the M4, M8 and M5 East motorways, as well as the M4-M5 Link Tunnels-making this Australia’s largest motorway control centre.
For motorists this means, wherever you are on the network, you will be supported by the combined expertise of Transurban’s managed motorway team. For businesses and freight vehicles, this will mean a smoother drive and a safer, more productive journey while on the job.
Our Traffic Control Room Operators (TCROs) are the ‘eyes on the road’, keeping motorists safe 24/7. As soon as an issue is detected-for example someone who needs help or who should not be on the motorway-TCRO’s send incident response crews to the scene and help coordinate emergency services.
Our TCROs are guided by a central traffic management system comprised of a 60-panel video wall and roadside technology, including more than 1,000 CCTV cameras; lane-use management systems; variable speed limit signs; and automatic incident, height, and occupancy detection systems.
In the future, the system will become increasingly automated, and coordinated with connected and automated vehicles.
Improving safety on Transurban’s roads
Motorists continue to benefit from further improvements to incident response coordination, reliability, and safety on our roads.
When the M5 East opened in 2001 it was already at capacity and had the slowest typical travel times of any motorway in Sydney.
Transurban began operating the motorway in 2020, investing more than $4.7 million to upgrade technology, safety equipment and maintenance facilities.
Since May 2020, crashes have dropped by more than 40%, a result of less traffic and smoother traffic flow in the tunnels. Incidents involving over-height vehicles entering the tunnel have also dropped by almost half, meaning motorists are spending less time stuck in gridlock while the incident is cleared.
About the M4-M5 Link Tunnels Project
The Tunnels are on track to open to traffic in 2023. When opened, these 7.5-kilometre twin tunnels are expected to reduce travel times and improve travel reliability by allowing motorists to bypass up to 52 sets of traffic lights between western Sydney and the city centre.
