Flood recovery works begin in Bulga
Published on 16 October 2023
As the Singleton community continues to recover from damage from multiple flooding events, Council is about to start works on one of its major repair projects that will once again connect rural villages by road.
Works to replace sections of The Inlet Road at Bulga that were washed away during record flooding in July 2022 will begin on Monday 16 October.
Justin Fitzpatrick-Barr, Council’s Director Infrastructure and Planning Services, said restoring the two culverts along The Inlet Road, which will reconnect properties on either side of Bulga, was a big-ticket item in Council’s flood recovery works program.
“For more than a year we have been working towards repairing the devastation caused by these flooding events but have been slowed down by factors outside of our control like material availability and access to disaster funding,” he said.
“The Inlet Road culvert replacement is one of the bigger items on our flood recovery works program, and it’s great to see construction start on another project that will restore our local road network.
“Not only will these works repair the two gaps created in the road by floodwater, restoring the link between properties and the village of Bulga, but the replacement culverts have been designed to ensure The Inlet Road can withstand further natural disasters.”
The Inlet Road works will include the construction of two new stormwater culverts, located about 3.2 kilometres from Putty Road, and road resurfacing.
Byrne Pipe and Civil have been awarded the tender to undertake the $1.5million project, funded through Transport for NSW’s Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements.
During works there will be earthmoving machinery, trucks, cranes, construction workers and materials on site.
The Inlet Road sidetrack will remain open during the works but will be closed once the project has been completed.
Works will be carried out between Monday and Friday between 7am and 5pm and, where approved by Council, some works may occur on a Saturday.
Road traffic management will be in place. Motorists are advised to slow down, take caution and follow signage.
Works are planned to be completed by mid-December 2023, weather permitting.
Almost $6million is being injected to repair the local road network in the Bulga, Broke, Milbrodale and Paynes Crossing villages following widespread damage during the July 2022 flooding event.
Access to disaster funding, material availability and lengthy approval processes from other levels of government have impacted timelines for these projects.
Council, led by the Mayor of Singleton, Cr Sue Moore, is proactively advocating to the State and Federal Governments for improvements to emergency management and recovery processes. For more information view Council’s Advocacy Agenda at:singleton.nsw.gov.au/advocacy