Tunnel takes its toll

Courier Mail

Liam Walsh

May 05, 2007 12:00am

Article with sounds and images available at http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,21672720-3102,00.html

JOHN Harris says he bought his wooden two-storey home in Bowen Hills five years ago because it was close to transport and located in a "quiet street".

The area is anything but quiet now, having become a transport focal point.

His home is located near the northern end of the North-South Bypass Tunnel.

Like other residents there and at the southern end of the tunnel near Woolloongabba, he bears the brunt of Brisbane's $3 billion construction project with drilling, blasting and trucks rumbling by or beeping with reverse alarms.

"Noisy, dirty," is how Mr Harris describes the project so far.

"The whole house is covered in dust . . . you can see on the shelf," he says, wiping it with his finger to reveal a coat of grime.

Traffic rumbles past his home now since tunnel work diverted vehicles to his small street.

"When the trucks go past you can't hear, you can't talk," the 68-year-old retiree says.

It gets so loud he has trouble hearing a complaints phone hotline for the joint venture 4.8km tunnel, which is being overseen by RiverCity Motorway.

Residents such as Mr Harris have made almost 160 complaints to the hotline since work began eight months ago.

The complaints, documents of some earlier ones having been obtained via freedom of information laws, range from pipe damage to excessive dust and work starting too early.

Then there's a resident who found a driveway concreted over without notification while another who threatened to stop the trucks by standing in the street.

RiverCity says complaint levels are low compared to Melbourne and Sydney projects, although it won't provide figures.
It says complaint numbers should also be considered in light of the project's closeness to major roads, hospitals, and 30,000 residences and businesses.

RiverCity argues efforts have been made to minimise impact, and mitigation measures for problems like dust and noise have been effective in most cases.

Documents also indicate some locals were satisfied with responses and the complaint handlers treated people with respect.

But other residents remained discontented and the project is just one of a host of planned tunnel and bridge works for Brisbane.

Jago Dodson, a research fellow in urban research at Griffith University, could not comment on the complaints specifically but says modern project managements should be able to come up with effective solutions to address community complaints about projects' environmental impacts.

Questions about impact mitigation of the tunnel raise further queries about what will happen if the full multi-tunnel TransApex project goes ahead, he says.

"These are costs being borne by the community on behalf of a private company," he says.

Those costs being borne so far are sparking frustration and concern.

"Workmen starting before 6.30am. This is waking him up," was one complaint recorded in September.

Preparation work was being done for a sound wall but it was "not completed when promised" because "sub-contractors failed to supply materials to continue work".

The complainant phoned many times over two months about noise. The site manager requested no work start before 6.30am and the site was to be locked until then.

Then there's the dust, which plagued one businessman.

He was noted as being "concerned about the increasing amount of excessive dust landing on cars. Customers are going to be angry."

The dispute was solved when covers were bought for the businessman, who was logged as being "grateful".

Other problems emerged such as a woman coming home from work one afternoon to find "a new footpath outside her house had been laid".

"This means she cannot access (deleted)," it states.

The next day the woman further explained "the driveway had been concreted and (deleted) could not get into their houses with their vehicles".

RiverCity apologised for the "isolated" incident when a subcontractor concreted the driveway without prior warning.

It was later described in the complaint notes as a temporary loss of driveway access.

Another man complained that laundry and kitchen water had been banking up in pipes and leaking on to his property for almost two weeks.

A plumber two days later "determined from looking at the drawing of the pipes that it was the fault of (the joint venture building the tunnel) during demolition of next door property".

A new sewerage pipe was installed. The note concluded: "Stakeholder happy with result."

It raises the issue of who pays for damage – RiverCity says the joint venture is responsible for any damage to properties due to work. Neither RiverCity nor the council is financially exposed.

Compensation may be a grey area. Zelma Boyle of Brian O'Connor Real Estate in Kangaroo Point says she was contacted last month by the joint venture asking her to inform a tenant he would have his only car park access cut off in three days for six months.

"I find that very little notice," she says.

She says she was initially told the owner might not be compensated, despite the possibility the tenant could seek a rent reduction due to losing the space.

RiverCity declined to comment on individual cases.

"The project does seek to provide early notice of works, where possible. Issues of compensation are considered on a case-by-case basis," RiverCity says.

Other complaints are about trucks using roads. It got so frustrating that one resident threatened to stand in the street.

RiverCity says the project seeks to abide by local laws and have trucks avoid using local streets "where possible". "There will be occasions for safety or logistical reasons that there is no alternative," RiverCity says.

Trucks hauling the rock spoil from the tunnel across Brisbane will be fitted with Global Positioning System devices to make sure drivers stick to designated roads.

Despite the numerous complaints – and RiverCity points out that gripes about "early" hours and use of "local" roads dropped in 2007 so that only one of each had been recorded by April – Brisbane City Council has not handed down any penalties as of April.

However, two incidents were being investigated and the Environmental Protection Agency was also checking a dust complaint.

The problems come despite Lord Mayor Campbell Newman publicly praising progress of the project.

He said in March that work, scheduled for 2010 completion, was progressing well and there had been no problems.

The mayor's office now maintains the complaints demonstrate the feedback system works rather than reflect a problem with the project.

But the incidents raise questions about why problems are occurring.

RiverCity, which raised $690 million from investors last year, and the mayor's office point out projects of this size and near so many people will cause disturbances.

It's not like the tunnel is alone causing problems – council received almost 1070 complaints in 12 months about building noise pollution or out-of-hours work.

Efforts to keep residents in the loop about tunnel works include door-knocks, letterbox drops, media advertising and liaison groups.

RiverCity rejects any suggestions of a lack of co-ordination or rush to meet deadlines, arguing the project always tries to improve itself which includes listening to the community.

There are financial incentives to finish the tunnel early and penalties for completing it late.

Griffith's Dodson, speaking generally, says any project manager must ensure completion of a project in a timely and efficient manner and that it "doesn't impose additional costs on the community through environmental short cuts".

RiverCity argues it would never compromise a program meeting "the high standards of safety, environmental management and community relations . . . established for the project".

The lord mayor's office similarly argues council will not compromise its regulatory role or community outcomes "so that the project is completed ahead of schedule".

The project is ahead right now and possibly will finish late 2009.

The builders, meanwhile, are trying to help people but there are questions about the speediness of responses.

Mr Harris says the joint venture has "sent some fellows around to get quotes" for installing sound-proofing measures.
"(But) They can't get anyone to come and do it because demand is too strong for tradesmen," he says.

RiverCity again declines to comment on an individual case.

Mr Harris says the changes would make his place more liveable.

"It's been too long," he says. "I don't mind the area – when it's nice and quiet and clean."