Denny Ave Level Crossing Removal

Raising or lowering the railway at Denny Avenue would not be possible without major changes to or rebuilding of Kelmscott Station. Similarly a road over or under solution would not be possible without affecting local business access and local road access in the area. Based on these major impacts to important community infrastructure this solution would not provide good community outcomes.

A number of other potential locations to cross the rail were assessed with key stakeholders, including the City of Armadale. However other locations would not encourage walking/cycling or promote Kelmscott town centre revitalisation. The other solutions would also mean significant disruptions to Denny Avenue during construction, and therefore cause major disruptions to the community’s main east-west road connection.

The Public Transport Authority (PTA) will extend its carpark on Railway Avenue by approximately 40 new bays. The current car parks at Kelmscott Station are not at capacity.

The level crossing at Denny Avenue will remain open at all times of the underpass construction. Only when the underpass is fully operational will the level crossing close.

Not only does this project improve overall road safety and traffic flow, the Denny Avenue level crossing removal will provide better walking and cycling connections in the area with a new principal-shared path along Railway Avenue. The project is also an opportunity to generally improve amenity in the public space around the railway including refurbishment of the Station Master’s House, establishing a public space plaza, and facilitate the development of a mixed-use development site.

The size of the road component of this project means that there will be impacts to road users. During construction, the PTA will aim to minimise road closures and their impacts to road users however they will be unavoidable. A Traffic Management Plan will be developed by the contractor which details impacted roads and changes required during construction. More information will be known when the contractor is on board in late 2019, and further details such as timing and roads affected will be communicated with the local community. 

The proposed design is aimed at providing a safe alternative to crossing the rail and improving traffic flow throughout the town centre, confirmed by traffic modelling. There will be changes to existing traffic along Davis Road and the inclusion of signalised intersections will ensure traffic is managed safely. New traffic lights will be installed and phased to ensure good traffic flow and reduce the congestion which is currently being experienced around the Denny Avenue level crossing

Yes, but not to cross the railway. Denny Avenue will be a calmer road with access from Streich Avenue, and left-in / left-out only access from / to Albany Highway (when travelling north on Albany Highway).

Any pedestrian access at the Denny Avenue location is still subject to more detailed design. However pedestrian access will be provided at the new Davis Road underpass and at Kelmscott Station.

Yes, but not to cross the railway. Denny Avenue will be a calmer road with access from Streich Avenue, and left-in / left-out only access from / to Albany Highway (when travelling north on Albany Highway).

Full construction impacts will be known when the contractor is appointed and detailed design is completed. However early staging plans show the Davis Road solution can largely be built with less impact to Denny Avenue during construction than other options. There will be impacts to Streich Avenue and Railway Parade during the road works, which will be managed to ensure they are kept to a minimum.

The final design for road underpass will be developed by the appointed contractors. More information will be provided to the community as this work progresses.

Noise modelling will be completed as the design progresses to identify what, if any, measures are needed to reduce noise from the rail operations. However, with the removal of the warnings sounds at Denny Avenue level crossing, overall noise is expected to be less.

The final road design is subject to detailed design, but the space can accommodate up to four lanes.

Where possible, the Public Transport Authority will close level crossings to improve safety and ease congestion. Despite being less than 200 metres long, Denny Avenue was identified in the RAC’s Risky Roads survey as the most dangerous road in Perth for two consecutive years. METRONET will continue to review how to best close other level crossings on the network.

Procurement will begin in the coming months with the aim to start construction in 2019.

Procurement for the construction work will begin mid-2019, with construction expected to begin late 2019. 

Pedestrians and traffic interacting with trains is a key risk on the rail network, the Public Transport Authority is working towards removing level crossings across the train network, not introducing or re-opening more. This is a national and global trend due to ongoing significant near-misses and the risk of death. As Kelmscott Station and the surrounding precinct is an established area, there will not be the re-establishment of any previous level crossings in the area.

The 2018-19 State Budget committed $1m to carry out further investigations into removing level crossings at Caledonian Avenue (Maylands), Oats Street (Carlisle) and Wharf Street (Cannington).