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Update on road and ferry closures as River Murray flows continue to increase
Wednesday, 16 November 2022
With River Murray water levels continuing to rise steadily, some road and ferry closures are expected within the next week. The Department is continuing to work to prepare for these closures, and to establish detours.
Bookpurnong Road is expected to be closed between Berri and Kemp Road within the next week - potentially as soon as this weekend - due to rising water levels.
Signage will be installed to advise road users of the detour route, which will be via Stanitzki Road to Sturt Highway, through Paringa and Renmark and onto Old Sturt Highway, Berri.
While this detour will add significant travel time for locals, the closure of Bookpurnong Road is required for the safety of the community.
The Department will keep roads open as long as safely possible, however other roads are likely to close in the coming weeks, including ferry access roads, as water levels continue to rise.
Maps showing roads expected to close at different water levels will be available later this week on the Department for Infrastructure and Transport’s website at www.dit.sa.gov.au.
Detour routes for these potential road closures will also be available later this week, to provide alternative road travel options for locals that need to travel across the region and allow the transport of essential supplies, commodities and services to continue to reach communities.
The Department currently has work crews in the region preparing for potential road closures and detours. These crews will continue to undertake frequent road inspections to ensure that as much advance notice as possible can be provided for any road closures. Road closure and detour signage will be deployed to any affected roads to keep all road users safe as water levels rise.
Road users are reminded to plan their journey, always drive to the conditions and obey any speed restrictions and signage.
Conditions can change quickly and roads may have to close at short notice. Locals and river-goers are reminded not to swim, ride, walk or drive through high flow waterways.
Ferries
Currently, all River Murray ferries remain open, however the Department is closely monitoring the impacts of the high water flows across all 11 ferry crossings.
The Waikerie ferry crossing will be the first to be impacted, with the lower landing unable to operate when the river depth exceeds 9.2 metres – which is expected to occur within the next week.
Works have been completed to install landing infrastructure and clear vegetation to ensure the Waikerie ferry is ready for service at the high flow ramp once water levels reach 9.6 metres.
There will be a short period where no ferry service can operate at Waikerie, while the ferry is moved from the lower to the higher landing. This changeover may take up to 2-3 days, however every effort will be made to reduce this timeframe.
Use of the higher ramp ferry will be initially restricted to light vehicles only with single lane operations and increased to double lane operations and all vehicle types (excluding B-Double permitted vehicles) once the water depth reaches 10 metres.
A number of other ferries will be affected in coming weeks, with the Morgan, Lyrup, Mannum and Walker Flat ferries considered at highest risk of closure due to flood conditions and rising river levels. As much advance notice as possible will be provided for any ferry closures.
Ferry locations and their current operational status can be found here: www.sa.gov.au/topics/boating-and-marine/river-murray-ferries/ferry-locations-and-operational-status
Road detour information for potential ferry closures will also be available on the Department’s website later this week.
More information
For the latest traffic information, including road closures, visit traffic.sa.gov.au.
The latest marine safety advice is available at www.marinesafety.sa.gov.au/river-murray-high-flows-2022-marine-safety-advice.
The Department will also be providing regular updates on its Facebook and Twitter pages as the situation develops - including details of any road closures (including ferry closures), detours and safety advice.
For more on River Murray high flows, please visit the State Government’s dedicated website at SA.GOV.AU - River Murray high flows 2022 (www.sa.gov.au).