Reviewing feedback

The Beaches Link Tunnel is the NSW Government's largest infrastructure investment in the Northern Beaches Local Government Area.

The tunnel would connect to the Warringah Freeway, cross underneath Middle Harbour and connect with the Burnt Bridge Creek Deviation at Balgowlah.

The Wakehurst Parkway will also be upgraded to two lanes each way between Seaforth and Frenchs Forest.

Following engagement with our community which included a facilitated public meeting in late 2018, a written submission to the state government was prepared by staff and presented to the Council meeting held on 27 November 2018. In this meeting Council resolved to support the project, subject to the state government addressing the concerns raised in our submission.


Response to the EIS

On 9 December 2020, the Beaches Link and Gore Hill Freeway Connection Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was placed on public exhibition through the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment's (DPIE) planning portal.

A submission in response to the EIS was prepared by staff and endorsed by Council at its ordinary meeting held on Tuesday 23 February 2021 and provided to DPIE on 1 March 2021.

Our submission was made available for public comment in March and April 2021.

The submission acknowledges that further work is needed by the project proponent to address the concerns raised in the response to the EIS as they move into detailed design.

The following key areas of concern were raised in our submission:

  • Bushland and biodiversity impacts and associated offsetting.
  • Groundwater drawdown in the local catchments.
  • Ecological impacts on the local creeks and Middle Harbour.
  • Construction impacts on the local residents and how this is managed through the Environmental Licence.
  • Impact on the adjoining road network, congestion during construction and operational impacts around the peripheral network approaching the tunnel.
  • Public Transport Priority over the private car usage.
  • Tunnel emissions including ongoing monitoring.
  • Active transport and bus connectivity (during and post construction).
  • Local road network being used to bypass the work zones.
  • Balgowlah Golf Course precinct and the reuse of the clubhouse for the community.

Next steps

Feedback received will be collated and fed into the detailed design stage, should the project progress to the next phase of development.

Read our submission

Click the boxes below to jump directly to the main sections of the EIS submission.

Please note not all individual chapters are listed below and may not appear in document order. Some section links have been combined and you may still need to scroll to the relevant chapter.

You can also read the whole submission that contains a clickable Table of Contents.


Contact us

Have questions or want to learn more about this project, contact us below:

Name Phil Devon, Manager Transport Network
Phone 1300 434 434
Email council@northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au