The M12 Motorway, initially known as Western Sydney Airport Motorway, is an under-construction east-west motorway in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, linking between the M7 Motorway and

The Northern Road The A9 is the outer western Sydney Bypass connecting Campbelltown to Windsor. It was formerly designated Metroad 9, which was one of Sydney's Metroads. “A9” is used as a route number designation for the entire length, however the road fa ...

, as part of the

Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan (WSIP) is an A$4.1 billion 10-year road investment program in Western Sydney, New South Wales, jointly funded by the federal government ($3.3 billion) and the New South Wales state government. Originally introdu ...

. The four-lane motorway is planned to be 14 km long and to be built at a cost of $1.75 billion (with both State and Federal funding). It is aimed at providing direct access from the M7 Westlink Motorway to the new

Western Sydney Airport Western Sydney International Nancy-Bird Walton Airport, also known as Western Sydney Airport or Badgerys Creek Airport, is a new international airport currently under construction within the suburb of Badgerys Creek, New South Wales, Australia. ...

situated at Badgerys Creek. The motorway began construction in August 2022 and is expected to open prior to the Western Sydney Airport opening in 2026.

Alignment

The M12 Motorway will run between M7 Motorway and

, including an exit to the access road towards the

. The motorway will have 4 lanes, with provision to be widened to 6 lanes. It will also be toll-free.

Elizabeth Drive

The existing road, Elizabeth Drive, is a two lane, single carriageway road linking the

Hume Highway Hume Highway, inclusive of the sections now known as Hume Freeway and Hume Motorway, is one of Australia's major inter-city national highways, running for between Melbourne in the southwest and Sydney in the northeast. Upgrading of the route ...

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, with

at Luddenham. It is one of several key thoroughfares in Western Sydney. The new motorway will run parallel to Elizabeth Drive.

History

Planning

On 17 June 2014, as part of the State Budget, the NSW Government announced a $5.5 billion road package for Western Sydney. It included $6 million for planning the Western Sydney Airport Motorway. The Budget was also the first time the name of the motorway was referred to. However, in recent years, government media and press releases simply refer to it as M12 Motorway. The project was granted planning approval in April 2021.

Construction

Major construction is proposed to commence in 2022 and is expected to be completed prior to the Western Sydney Airport opening in December 2026. The construction of the motorway was split into three sections. In June 2020, the companies shortlisted to build two of the three sections were announced: * west section including the connection to the airport: Acciona, Fulton Hogan, and CPB Georgiou Group joint venture * central section from west of South Creek to Duff Road: CPB Georgiou Group joint venture, and Seymour Whyte In May 2022, Seymour Whyte and CPB Georgiou Group joint venture were announced as the contractors for the central and west sections respectively. Procurement of the east section (connection with Elizabeth Drive and the M7) will occur later in the same year. Construction began in August 2022 on the west and central sections.

References

External links

M12 Motorway project pageProject's Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
- Major Projects Portal {{Road infrastructure in Sydney Proposed roads in Australia Highways in Sydney Western Sydney