The Torrens Linear Park was completed in 1997 as the first of its kind developed in Australia where it is the largest hills-to-coast park. It began as a flood mitigation scheme along the

River Torrens The River Torrens , (Karrawirra Parri / Karrawirraparri) is the most significant river of the Adelaide Plains. It was one of the main reasons for the siting of the city of Adelaide, capital of South Australia. It flows from its source in the ...

running westward from the Adelaide Hills, through the Adelaide metropolitan area, to the sea. Cyclists and walkers can use a trail that runs the length of the park, from Gorge Road, in

Athelstone Athelstone is a suburb of Adelaide in the City of Campbelltown, South Australia, City of Campbelltown. It was established in the 19th century but only became part of suburban Adelaide in the second half of the 20th century. It is approximatel ...

in the north-east, through the Northern Parklands of the

City of Adelaide The City of Adelaide, also known as the Corporation of the City of Adelaide and Adelaide City Council is a local government area in the metropolitan area of greater Adelaide, South Australia and is legally defined as the capital city of South ...

, to the river mouth at

Henley Beach Henley Beach is a coastal suburb of Adelaide, South Australia in the City of Charles Sturt. History Henley Beach was named for the English town of Henley-on-Thames, the home town of Sir Charles Cooper, South Australia's first judge. Coope ...

in the west.The Australian Institute of Landscape Architects >...> River Torrens Linear Park, Adelaide
Accessed 6 December 2013. In the Parklands section, the river runs past many notable landmarks including the

Adelaide Zoo Adelaide Zoo is Australia's second oldest zoo (after Melbourne Zoo), and it is operated on a non-profit basis. It is located in the parklands just north of the city centre of Adelaide, South Australia. It is administered by the Royal Zoologic ...

, the

Adelaide Botanic Gardens The Adelaide Botanic Garden is a public garden at the north-east corner of the Adelaide city centre, in the Adelaide Park Lands. It encompasses a fenced garden on North Terrace (between Lot Fourteen, the site of the old Royal Adelaide Hospital ...

, the Festival Theatre and Elder Park. There are shared-use pedestrian and cycling paths along both sides of the river for most of the length of the park, and along one side of the

O-Bahn Busway The O-Bahn Busway is a guided busway that is part of the bus rapid transit system servicing the northeastern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia. The O-Bahn system was conceived by Daimler-Benz to enable buses to avoid traffic congestion by s ...

History

The valley of the River Torrens, particularly its lower reaches, had become badly polluted following European settlement in 1836. Land clearance lead to increased runoff and erosion, with major flood events occurring in 1917 and 1933. An artificial channel, Breakout Creek, was completed in 1937, diverting floodwaters directly to the sea, and opening up areas of the western suburbs to housing development, particularly after World War II. Rapid expansion of housing in the eastern suburbs also took place at this time. Awareness of the risk of increased runoff leading to further flooding events lead to various proposals for flood mitigation in the 1950s and 1960s, including converting the river to a concrete-lined channel, or an underground storm-water pipe below a major highway. The Torrens Linear Park concept, using the river valley for combined use as

urban open space In land-use planning, urban green space is open-space areas reserved for parks and other "green spaces", including plant life, water features -also referred to as blue spaces- and other kinds of natural environment. Most urban open spaces are ...

with flood mitigation, was initially set out in the ''River Torrens Study'' (1979) and the ''River Torrens Flood Mitigation Study'' (1980). The ''River Torrens Linear Park and Flood Mitigation Scheme'' was approved by State Parliament in 1981. A further elaboration, the ''River Torrens Linear Park Study'', included a transport option for a section of the park east of the CBD, which became the O-Bahn guided busway. The scheme required the cooperation of the state government, responsible for land acquisition and flood mitigation works, and the then 12 (now 8) metropolitan councils bordering the river, responsible for landscaping and construction of cycling/walking trails. Construction works began in January 1982, and were completed in September 1997. The Linear Park became protected against further development with the passing of the ''River Torrens Linear Park Act'' on 21 June 2006. Between 2007 and 2008 a new aqueduct, an underground water pipe from Gorge Weir to the Hope Valley Reservoir, was constructed along an eastern section of the Linear Park, while the land formerly occupied by the open channel of the old Highbury Aqueduct was added to the Linear Park in 2012.Erin Jones
Highbury Aqueduct site to open to the public next week
''Leader Messenger'', 29 November 2012. Accessed 6 December 2013.

References

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