Council settles on raised intersection for Clifton / Central

At the Council meeting of 30 June 2023, Council voted to progress ‘Option 4 – raised intersection plateau’ as the solution to the issues experienced by drivers and residents using the Clifton Crescent / Central Avenue intersection.

The intersection has been the subject of road safety concerns from the local community, with reports being presented to Council in October 2022 and February 2023.

In determining the best approach, Council was presented with the below options and the corresponding data from a community survey conducted in early 2023:

• Option 1 – Extension of the Central Avenue median through the intersection (to prevent through and right turns in and out of Clifton Crescent)
• Option 2 – Modification of traffic islands on the two Clifton Crescent approaches (to prevent through and right turns out of Clifton Crescent, yet still allow right turns into Clifton Crescent from Central Avenue)
• Option 3 – Cul-de-sac closure of Clifton Crescent north (to remove all movements in and out of the northern approach)
• Option 4 – Raised intersection plateau (with no movements restricted)
• Option 5 – Do nothing.

A consultation period on the options was open for five weeks, closing on Friday 28 April 2023, and received a significant total of 936 valid responses were from the community. Option 4 was rated by the community a close second behind Option 2, however it was the preferred option in Council’s opinion based largely on the fact that it was the option least likely to cause further distribution of traffic or ‘rat-runs’ onto nearby local roads.

With no funds allocated for the construction of treatments at the intersection, and with Option 4 being one of the most expensive options, Council also resolved to submit a grant funding application under the 2024/2025 Black Spot Program for the implementation of the raised intersection plateau.

City officers will now prepare designs and a funding submission to the State and Australian Government’s 2024/2025 Black Spot Program, due in July.

Black Spot submissions are independently reviewed by Main Roads WA and are expected to take 9-12 months to determine, based on the intersection treatment proposed and the corresponding crash data.

Based on road safety improvements recorded at similar treatments, if funded this project is expected to result in over $6.8 million in crash cost savings over the next 20 years. While a numerical value is used to assess the merits of road safety projects, this represents a very significant reduction in injuries and property damage for members of the local community over the life of this project.