Riverside Expressway

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For the highway in Southern California, see Riverside Freeway.

The expressway forms part of Metroad 3.

The Riverside Expressway runs parallel to the Brisbane River and George Street.

The Riverside Expressway is part of the Pacific Motorway that runs through Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is located on the western side of the Brisbane CBD and is made up of various bridges and overpasses.

The Expressway runs the entire western length of the Brisbane CBD from Coronation Drive to the Captain Cook Bridge at Gardens Point, an estimated 3 km before becoming the Pacific Motorway which ends at the Gold Coast.

The North Bank development is proposed to alleviate the visual disruption of the expressway and recapture Brisbane for pedestrians.

1 Construction
2 Maintenance Works
3 Ann and Alice Street On Ramp Fracture
4 External links
5 References

[edit] Construction

Construction on the Riverside Expressway began in late 1968, when the pylons for the bridge were laid on the North bank of the Brisbane River. The bridge was completed in 1975.

[edit] Maintenance Works

During September and October 2006, roadworks occurred on the Expressway, and surrounding structures, including the Captain Cook Bridge. Maintenance on these structures had not been done since its construction in the 1970's.

[edit] Ann and Alice Street On Ramp Fracture

The expressway at night

An empty Riverside Expressway, closed for checking by engineers.

On 17 October 2006, parts of the expressway were closed due to safety concerns regarding hairline cracks in the Alice St and Ann St ramps.

The initial conclusion reached by engineers is that the hairline fracture, measuring over 2 metres long and 0.4mm wide, was caused by the stress on the structure due to "The weight of both ramps is [now] balanced on one bearing and they are failing to shift their weight to their other bearings as designed." ^[1] ^[2]

This road closure caused widespread delays for motorists travelling through the inner city. Public transport facilities were heavily utilised to travel to work at peak periods. Business activity in the Brisbane central business district was affected by a dramatic reduction in customers as shoppers avoided the area.

On 20 October Department of Main Roads workers successfully drove a 22 tonne truck up and down the Ann Street ramp deeming the ramp to have passed a weight test. The main section of the Expressway was reopened, except for the Alice St. and Ann St. ramps. A few days later the ramps were completely reopened to all but heavy vehicles.