The Importance of Access Covers for our Roads
Australian Main Roads and Highways
Australian Main Roads and Highways
Roads are a crucial aspect of Australia’s transportation infrastructure and play a vital role in connecting people, goods and services across the country. With a land area of 7.7 million square kilometers, Australia has one of the lowest population densities in the world, making roads an essential mode of transportation for many communities.
Spanning over 900,000 kilometers, the Australian road network connects major cities, regional centers and remote communities; facilitating trade, tourism and the movement of goods and people. Road transport is an integral component in the growth of the economy and continues to serve as one of the dominant modes of freight transport in the country.
The utility that roads provide in transport and trade can often overshadow the impact that roads also have in the economy. In 2021 – 2022, 9% of Australia’s GDP came from Australian infrastructure industries, with roads leading the sector. Additionally, the transport sector provides near 700,000 jobs in Australia.
How Access Covers Help Our Roads
Access covers are designed to provide a safe and secure covering for access points to underground infrastructure. They serve to protect these facilities while also preventing pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles from accidentally falling into the openings and injuring themselves. Manhole covers are also designed to be visually appealing and unobtrusive, to blend in with the surrounding environment. This factor is especially important to maintain smooth traffic flow on roads. Covers are typically located in the middle of lanes and can cause disruption if they are damaged or missing. Most importantly, Manhole covers provide easy access to underground utility infrastructure, facilitating routine maintenance and repairs. Without these covers, accessing underground infrastructure would be difficult, time consuming and dangerous, making it near impossible to maintain common road utilities such as traffic lights.
Notable EJ Road Projects
Legacy Way
West Gate Freeway
Transporting upwards of 200,000 vehicles a day, the West Gate freeway is a major road in Melbourne that links Geelong with Melbourne’s western suburbs. Increased congestion, demand from the nearby port and an increasing population are putting a growing pressure on Melbourne’s road networks. To help combat this, the West Gate Freeway is undergoing a widening to 12 through lanes, with the intention of cutting transit time by up to 20 minutes. EJ is playing an integral role in this development, providing quality products for the freeways access requirements.
Airportlink M7
Connecting Brisbane’s Clem7 and Legacy Way tunnels to the Brisbane airport, the Airportlink tunnel is an integral part of the Brisbane transport infrastructure. With an estimated 100,000 daily commuters using the tunnel to avoid heavy traffic, the Airport link is an important resource for Brisbane drivers. An important part of the Airportlink tunnel are the drainage systems that keep the tunnel dry and safe. EJ provides simple and resilient access solutions for these underground systems, along with the ventilation systems that keep the tunnel running.
The EJ Solution
To accommodate the demanding conditions that main roads and tunnels demand, EJ employ resilient, lasting, Class-D products such as the GTG30D trench grate and the ES0906D Ermatic Solid Top. The GTG30D is a tough, efficient grate that can be extended to accommodate different requirements or locations. Manufactured with galvanized steel, this trench grate fulfills drainage requirements for main roads and tunnels, where durability and strength are a necessity. The ES0906D is part of a comprehensive and highly specified range of access covers that facilitate the protection and concealing of underground services. In roads and tunnels, The Ermatic Solid Top excels in providing rapid and easy access to telecommunication and electrical chambers for maintenance and deployment.
GTG30D Trench Gate
ES0906D Ermatic Solid Top
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