Elliott Panos is a Route Manager at Main Roads WA, and he came along to talk to us about the Smart Freeway project on the Kwinana Freeway northbound – between Roe Highway and the Narrows Bridge. This involves the installation of sophisticated technologies to achieve more reliable journeys, safer driving experiences and reduced congestion. The project started about 18 months ago, and it uses technology to monitor and adjust traffic conditions with a view to reducing congestion by changing speed limits when needed, using ramp signals to make merging easier, and opening and closing lanes in the event of an incident. Given that the Freeway is bounded by the river on one side and the train line on the other, there is no possibility of annexing any additional space for the traffic, and so it was decided that the emergency stopping lane would be scrapped and converted into a full time traffic lane. This means that traffic entering the Freeway at the Canning Highway on-ramp does not have to merge with existing Freeway traffic, thus reducing congestion and enhancing traffic flow. There are now 6 emergency off-Freeway stopping bays which provide refuge for any vehicles which have broken down. Travel times have been improved in spite of a 13% increase in traffic volume. Elliott displayed some of the technology live from the control centre, and advised that the next Smart Freeway project will be the Mitchell Freeway southbound.
