M5 corridor Inside the M5 tunnel
Inside the M5 tunnelThis website provides information, photos and data about Australia’s first trial of air filters in a road tunnel. The air filtration plant is part of the RTA’s plan to improve air quality in the M5 East tunnel. An 18 month trial of the M5 East air filtration equipment trial is commencing. This trial of the use of air filtration equipment in a road tunnel is an Australian first. The trial will provide data on air quality and visibility in the tunnel as it becomes available. It will take a period of time for testing and configuration of air quality equipment before accurate and reliable data is produced. The plant will not run 24 hours a day. The RTA will be testing the equipment at different times of day and in in different environmental and traffic conditions, which will provide information about the best times to operate the filtration plant to achieve best results. To view a video about the air filtration equipment in the plant at Earlwood and the 18 month filtration trial, click here. Air filtration technology is being used in road tunnel ventilation systems in Norway, Japan and Spain. However, published data on how effective the air filters actually is not publicly available. Australia will lead the way undertaking the trial and publishing a comprehensive review of the data. The trial operation will commence in March 2010. Air is improving in the M5 East tunnelThe key contributors to poor air quality are smoky trucks. Air in the tunnel is, however, generally improving due to:
Dealing with the pollution from cars and trucks at the source not only improves tunnel air quality but will also improve air quality across the wider Sydney road network.
Left graph: Demonstrates trend over time of decreasing particulates in the Turrella stack. Click on the link below to download a larger copy of the above graphs.
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