Project update

Thanks for having your say! The Darby Street revised traffic calming concept designs have now been adopted by Council. Read the Engagement Report to find out what we heard.

Detailed design for the upgrades will commence this financial year with construction to follow. We will provide an update to the community when construction is due to commence.


Overview

City of Newcastle (CN) conducted a six-month Streets as Shared Spaces (SaSS) trial in Darby Street from 29 September 2022 to 28 February 2023. The trial which was funded by the NSW Government, aimed to improve the outdoor dining experience as well as safety and accessibility for pedestrians and cyclists.

During the trial, we asked the community what worked well and what could be improved. Overall, 69% of survey respondents wanted to see the trial infrastructure retained. However, we heard some concerns from the community about the design of the northern and southern entries to the 30km/h zone.

On 28 March 2023, the elected Council reviewed the outcomes of the trial and approved the retention of infrastructure that was installed as part of the trial, including the outdoor dining deck and associated traffic calming devices.

We're now seeking community feedback on the revised concept designs for traffic calming infrastructure at the northern and southern entries of the 30km/h zone along Darby Street.

For more information about the Darby Street SaSS trial, visit the project page.


Key changes include:

  • Relocating the northern entry to the 30km/h traffic calmed zone, to just south of the Queen Street intersection
  • Removing existing entries to the 30km/h traffic calmed zone, on Darby Street between Laman Street and Queen Street
  • Removing existing entries to the 30km/h traffic calmed zone on Queen Street
  • Upgrading the southern entry to the 30km/h traffic calmed zone, including replacement of speed cushions with a raised threshold
  • Reducing the existing concrete islands at the Bull Street 30km/h zone entry

Thanks for having your say!

Thank you to everyone who provided feedback on the revised traffic calming concept designs via our online survey. Read the Engagement Report to find out what we heard.