Key features and benefits

The Cross City Tunnel Project has been carefully planned and designed to bring significant benefits to a diverse range of people including road users, pedestrians and members of local communities. This page outlines some of the key features and benefits of the project.

Key features

William Street upgrade

William Street was redesigned in order to improve its public amenity, safety and environmentally sustainable travel options. Footpaths were widened, extensive tree planting undertaken, and a transit lane and cycleway were added. 

The Royal Botanic Gardens noise wall  

To ensure that traffic noise and visual impacts on the Royal Botanic Gardens and the Domainwere minimised, innovative and visually interesting noise walls were constructed along the Cahill Expressway. On the Royal Botanic Gardens side, the noise wall is a timber fence with a transparent panel to retain views at the western end. On the Domain side, a sandstone faced wall was built.This wall was designed to serve as a memorial to the Australian servicemen and women who have died overseas whilst on non-combatant duty. 

Key benefits

Improved road travel

Road users benefit from:

• Dramatic cuts in travel time east-west across the city. The tunnel bypasses 18 sets of traffic lights, enabling commuters to cross the city in approximately two minutes.
• Less congestion on city streets.
• Improved speed and reliability of bus services within the city.
• Improved access and movement within the city for taxis, delivery vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians.

Travel-time savings

Commuters using the tunnel save, on average, 11 minutes per journey.

Improved pedestrian and cyclist facilities

Pedestrians and cyclists benefit from:

• Safer and more pleasant city streets.
• Improved footpaths, the result of widening, upgrading and tree planting on many city streets.
• Quicker pedestrian travel with shorter waits at ‘Walk’ signals throughout the city.
• Safer bicycle travel with the provision of on-road bicycle lanes between Kings Cross and Town Hall.