Local residents are frustrated by a lack of transparency in the decision making regarding the Moruya bypass

The group formed in May 2021 after residents banded together to seek more clarity about the decision making process regarding the bypass. The group consists of environmentalists, business owners, landowners and concerned Moruya locals.

The group are primarily concerned reports pertaining to Transport for NSW's favoured orange route are no longer relevant because the route was altered after their publication.

"All the reports released this year are irrelevant because they've changed the orange route," group member Julie Morgan said.

"They are about an orange route that doesn't exist anymore."

The orange route was extended at both ends after the reports were finalised, and group member Deb Stevenson - a trained biologist - said these changes would negatively impact the environment, yet the environmental report had not been updated.

She said the route changes extended the bypass through "endangered community", considered at risk at a state and Commonwealth level.

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The group said Transport for NSW had been unable to answer their questions about the reports, or about the justification for decision making regarding the bypass.

A Transport for NSW spokesperson said Transport for NSW would undertake additional design and environmental investigations to develop a concept design and environmental assessment for the bypass.

Group member Brett Stevenson said finalising such important details after selecting a route was unacceptable.

"It will be too late to change anything," he said.

Traffic counts carried out by Transport for NSW between 2013 and 2019 showed only 11 per cent of Moruya's daily traffic was heavy vehicles. The spokesperson said three quarters of all traffic would continue to travel into Moruya even with the bypass.

"$750 million is for 25 per cent of the traffic coming through Moruya," Ms Morgan said.

However, Transport for NSW has not confirmed construction costs at this stage of the project.

"This is not for locals," Ms Stevenson said. "This is for trucks, and it's for maybe two weeks at Christmas and one week at Easter."

Ms Morgan said questions asked in submissions to Transport for NSW in June 2021 remained unanswered, such as the future of the existing Moruya bridge, and why the orange route had been selected as the favoured route.

The spokesperson said the orange route was found to best meet the project outcomes on balance across all goals and objectives including safety, resilience, livability, connectivity and sustainability.

"Corridor options that were closer to town were considered to have an increased adverse impact on flooding, noise and visual amenity," they said.

The group said there had been a lack of communication by Transport for NSW regarding the bypass, and the community remained largely unsure about the plans for the route.

"No one can believe it when they hear there is no on or off ramps," Ms Morgan said. "They just don't know."

"Most people do not know it's a raised land bridge, five metres high and possibly four lanes wide," Ms Stevenson said.

The group blames this lack of community knowledge on the consultation process occurring online during COVID, which they argue prevented those without the technological capabilities from submitting feedback or accessing information.

The Transport for NSW spokesperson could not confirm how many homes would be impacted by the favoured orange route.

"We will continue to talk directly with impacted property owners where possible to limit the impacts to landowners and the farming community," they said.

"We are not able to confirm property impacts until the corridor and concept design is confirmed."

While the spokesperson said the Moruya bypass had been identified as a priority project as part of the Princes Highway upgrade program, the bypass was not included in the NSW Infrastructure priorities report from 2022 to 2042. The spokesperson did not answer questions regarding who determined the project to be priority, or on what basis it was prioritised.

The spokesperson did not respond to questions from the Bay Post asking if a cost benefit analysis had been undertaken on the different routes.

"This is a north coast solution for a south coast issue," Ms Morgan said. "We are a different place. We are the nature coast."

Community consultation regarding the bypass closes June 13.

You can submit feedback here.