Roads and Traffic

Traffic is an important issue in the Parliamentary Zone. Commonwealth and Kings Avenues are major traffic routes connecting the north and south of Canberra and both carry large volumes of peak hour traffic. More importantly, commuters travelling to and from the Civic, Barton or Fyshwick districts use the east-west roads that go through the Zone, i.e. King Edward, King George and Queen Victoria Terraces.

A disproportionate amount of through-traffic uses King Edward Terrace and as a consequence there are a number of traffic and pedestrian safety problems. These problems include the speed at which traffic moves along King Edward Terrace, the proximity of a number of intersections, the lack of pedestrian crossing points, and poor visibility at intersections and at existing pedestrian crossings. The mix between cars and the large number of commercial vehicles, especially trucks, which use King Edward Terrace, heightens all of these problems.

What makes King Edward Terrace such an attractive route is that it provides a direct connection from Northbourne Avenue to Wentworth Avenue and the city’s south-east area. Currently there is no easy way for southbound traffic from Northbourne Avenue to get onto Parkes Way or Constitution Avenue and thence out to the Monaro Highway and the south-east. Commuters who are familiar with the short cuts via the Terraces have no problem accessing the Zone. Visitors, however, do have problems as the entries to the Zone are not obvious and in most cases, at the intersection where they must leave the avenues, they cannot see their destination. The worst scenario is at the eastern end of King Edward Terrace where people must turn left off Kings Avenue onto an exit ramp in order to go right into the Zone.

Unfortunately, first time visitors trying to navigate their way through the Zone can find it just as confusing as entering. There is a lack of signage and there is no clear hierarchy in the road system. Dorothy Tangney Place, for example, leads into a car park and yet it is some 20 metres wide with two lanes in either direction.

Public transport is available to and from the Zone for the office workers but is not convenient for the visitor wanting to move about the Zone with relative spontaneity.

This lack of visitor public transport, the separation of the national institutions and the incomplete path system virtually force visitors to use their cars to move from one national attraction to another.

To assist in ameliorating some of the traffic problems, a number of improvements to the road layout and design are proposed. These include:

Establishing a legible hierarchy in the roads by giving each a different character, drawn from variables such as the road surface and width, avenue planting and directional signage. In this way Commonwealth and Kings Avenues will be distinguished as the primary access roads, King Edward and King George Terraces as secondary address roads and Parkes Place, Queen Victoria Terrace and Federation Mall as the tertiary distributors. The lanes within the campuses that lead to building entries or to car parks will be developed as shared zones for pedestrians and cars.
Changing King Edward Terrace from a thoroughfare to a main street. This can be achieved by creating ‘T’ intersections and traffic lights at its junctions with Commonwealth and Kings Avenues, by rationalising the number of entry points to the campuses and by adding pedestrian crossing points to provide continuity in the path system. With the exception of service vehicles and tourist coaches, a load limit is also being considered as a traffic calming and safety measure.
Removing Bowen Place, Flynn Place, and the straight sections of Langton Crescent and Dorothy Tangney Place. This removal is possible if ‘T’ intersections are made at the intersections of King Edward Terrace, Commonwealth and Kings Avenues. These roads were built to a large scale in the expectation that Parliament House would be built on the lakeshore rather than on Capital Hill.

After these modifications take effect, traffic travelling from the north to the south areas of Canberra would use alternative routes including Limestone Avenue, Fairbairn Avenue and Monaro Highway; or via Northbourne Avenue, London Circuit, Constitution Avenue and Parkes Way; or via Commonwealth Avenue, Capital Circle and Canberra Avenue. A citywide traffic review should be undertaken to establish the likely implications of loading these routes.

Rationalising traffic movement and making roads more convenient and legible will greatly improve the amenity, accessibility and visitor experience of the place of the people.