O-Bahn gridlock fears as MotoGP petition hits parliament
Fears “tens of thousands” of north-eastern suburbs commuters will be disrupted by MotoGP works are being raised as a petition calling for a halt to the project is tabled in parliament.
An outer-city council is worried about the impact of the possible closure of one of Adelaide’s most-used transport routes linking the north-eastern suburbs to the CBD to facilitate the construction of the MotoGP city street circuit.
Meanwhile, a petition led by Adelaide Park Lands protesters that has amassed more than 40,000 signatures will be tabled in parliament later today, triggering a parliamentary inquiry into the MotoGP and golf course plans.
Campbelltown City Council Mayor Jill Whittaker is calling on the state government to provide information about potential commuter disruptions and closures to the O-Bahn busway when MotoGP construction gets underway in December this year.
“The lack of information is really the primary problem we have, and the fact that we need to have some negotiation because we’re affecting tens of thousands of people potentially,” Whittaker said.
“Perhaps the government has a plan, and we’d like to talk to them about what the plan might be. But without that information, we can’t help the government work through these issues.”
The Adelaide O-Bahn is one of the state’s busiest transport hubs. It averages 30,000 bus ticket validations every day and has hundreds of buses drive on its tracks.
It runs 12 kilometres between the city centre and northeastern suburbs, with stops at Klemzig Interchange, Paradise Interchange, and Tea Tree Plaza Interchange in Modbury.
You might like
Whittaker told InDaily closures could create “very slow and nightmarish” traffic for commuters heading into the city, and that local residents were supportive of council raising the issue.
“If the services are poor, people won’t use the O-Bahn. They’ll have to find other means of travel,” she said.
“North Terrace is going to be like a car park because all of the cars coming from the north-east that need to go through the city will go that way.
“Now the government may have a solution, and we’d be really pleased to hear what that solution is.”
Construction plans for the new MotoGP city circuit are planned to commence in December of this year for completion in time for the November 2027 event. Premier Peter Malinauskas has said a final track outline was expected to be released “within weeks”.
A state government spokesperson confirmed that MotoGP design works were being finalised and that public consultation would start when this was completed.
“As announced in February, during the MotoGP public transport will continue to operate during construction and during the event, with detours in place as required,” the spokesperson said.
“It’s ironic that the vocal opponents of MotoGP in the Adelaide City Council and Park Lands Association were also vocal opponents of the O-Bahn tunnel, which has improved the city significantly.”
Campbelltown Council has requested meetings with senior state government officials including the Premier and Transport Minister Joe Szakacs to work through potential disruptions.
Stay informed, daily
“I’m hopeful that they will meet with us because they will acknowledge that this is a fairly important thing. Just as it is for any transport system that’s highly valued, this is one of the busiest transport routes in the whole of Adelaide,” Whittaker said.
“A lot will be affected. It’s the children who go to school in town, the people who have work in town, but it’s also that it’s just a great disruptor, but we don’t know what kind of disruptor.”
Park Lands petition to be tabled in parliament
Meanwhile, Adelaide Park Lands protesters will today present more than 40,000 physical signatures calling on the government to halt MotoGP and to return Possum Park and John E Brown Park in North Adelaide to the control of the city council.
A total of 43,784 signatures have been accepted by the parliamentary clerk after lobbyists spent several days counting and verifying signatures, with the petition to be tabled by Greens Leader Rob Simms in parliament today.
This was expected to trigger a parliamentary inquiry into the park lands redevelopments.
Adelaide City Councillor Keiran Snape, who has been lobbying against the MotoGP and North Adelaide Golf Course redevelopments, told InDaily the number of signatures “shows South Australians will not take this lying down”.
“They are increasingly concerned about the future of the Park Lands and the way decisions affecting them are being made,” Snape said.
“Adelaide can host world-class events and invest in its future without permanently damaging the Park Lands that make the city unique.
“But that can only happen if the community has a genuine say before irreversible decisions are made. Public land demands public accountability.”
It is one of the largest petitions to be tabled in South Australian parliament in recent years; the most recent high-signature petition had more than 11,000 signatures calling for greyhound racing in SA to be banned, while a 2021 petition into ramping amassed more than 40,000 signatures.
Simms will introduce the petition to the upper house when parliament resumes later today.
“With one of the biggest petitions in South Australian history, it’s clear the community want to protect our Park Lands,” Simms said.
“The Greens urge the Malinauskas Government to listen to the community and halt all works on the MotoGP while this inquiry is underway.”
Want to see more stories from InDaily SA in your Google search results?
- Click here to set InDaily SA as a preferred source.
- Tick the box next to "InDaily SA". That's it.
