Bulli Pass will be closed to traffic in both directions, five nights per week for five months to repair landslip sites about the size of two Olympic swimming pools.

Construction is set to begin later this month to repair the landslips, caused by record-breaking rainfall in 2022, in an $8 million dollar project funded by the NSW and Commonwealth Governments.

Transport for NSW say multiple crews will be put in place to work side-by-side so the complex repairs, starting on Tuesday February 27 2024, can be completed as quickly as possible. However, the work will still require several months of changed traffic conditions on the troubled Pass.

Three landslip sites are located at the top section of Bulli Pass between the M1 Princes Motorway and ‘the elbow’ or hairpin bend, with another about one kilometre downhill near Greens Pinch.

The total work area required to repair the four landslip sites is about the size of two Olympic swimming pools.

The landslips occurred in March 2022 when the Illawarra escarpment received almost five times the average monthly rainfall, and then eight and a half times the June average.

Transport say the road must be closed in both directions overnight for five nights per week for a period of five months while the work is carried out at the sites on the top section of road. Transport has planned these repairs to be carried out when traffic volumes are lightest – from 7.30pm to 4.30am, Sundays to Thursdays – to minimise the impact on motorists. The left hand northbound lane of the Pass will be closed both day and night during the length of the roadworks.

Detours will be in place during the road closures either via Lawrence Hargrave Drive or the M1 Princes Motorway and Memorial Drive adding up to 20 minutes to journeys.

Transport has made significant progress on its natural disaster recovery work across the Illawarra and South Coast, having completed more than half of the 100 landslip damage sites on state roads following the severe weather events in 2022.

Minister for the Illawarra and the South Coast Ryan Park said the critical work will help make the slopes on Bulli Pass more resilient to future severe weather events.

“Transport for NSW will be installing more than 500 long steel rods, called soil nails, that will add strength to the mountain slope and then applying over 1600 square metres of spray-on concrete, known as shotcrete, to prevent further erosion.

“The crews will also install new drains, repair damaged road pavement and replace guardrails, as needed and help protect this important corridor for the Illawarra.” 

Member for Heathcote Maryanne Stuart said the landslip-damaged sections of road on Bulli Pass are steep and narrow, making the repairs challenging.

“Transport has engaged contractors with specialist skills and equipment to complete the work,” she said.

“The steep sites will involve use of large machinery, such as long-reach excavators, and workers abseiling on the slope to carry out some of the repairs.

“The conditions of the road and work involved create a unique set of risks and to keep motorists and workers safe, there needs to be a combination of full road closures and partial lane closures while the work is carried out.”

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