Pacific Highway Upgrade Wins AILA National Award of Excellence
KI Studio is delighted that Pacific Highway Upgrade has won the 2021 AILA National Award of Excellence for Infrastructure. Our contribution to this project included involvement as urban designers and landscape architects for Bundacree Creek to Possum Brush, Karuah Bypass, Iluka Rd to Woodburn, Herons Creek, and Failford Road sections.
Jury comment:
In this legacy project that has been undertaken over a 24-year period, the landscape architect has been instrumental in the delivery of sustainable outcomes associated with the planning, design, and implementation of the 675-kilometre duplication of the highway between Hexham, New South Wales and the Queensland border.
This sweeping green highway provides panoramic views to the Great Dividing Range and forests, farmland and coastline. The sustainable outcomes have been exceptional and include the provision of an important connection to Country and the creation of an environmentally sensitive and responsive landscape.
Social and environmental outcomes include the minimizing of visual impacts, the provision of rest areas and parks, the integrated design of bridges, tunnels, and walls and the maximizing of landscape spatial qualities such as soils, planting and seeding. These measures have significantly improved the design and created an outstanding outcome for both the community and the stakeholders.
The depth of thought and leadership demonstrated in this project has resulted in a national benchmark for highway design with an ecological dimension.
Entrant practice/companys
AECOM, ARUP, CM+, Context, Corkery Consulting with Studio Colin Polwarth, DEM, DesignInc, Environmental Partnership, HBO+EMTB, Hassell, Jackson Teece, KI Studio, Spackman Mossop Michaels, Tract and the Centre for Urban Design
Indigenous Country of project
Worimi, Biripi, Dainggatti, Gumbainggir and Bundjalung
Project address
Pacific Highway, Hexham to the Queensland border, NSW
Project team/collaborators
Transport for NSW and its engineering, planning, environment and design contractors.
Urban design contractors carrying out landscape architecture for the program: AECOM, ARUP, CM+, Context, Corkery Consulting with Studio Colin Polwarth, DEM, DesignInc, Environmental Partnership, HBO+EMTB, Hassell, Jackson Teece, KI Studio, Spackman Mossop Michaels, Tract
Project overview
Landscape architecture and urban design input into the planning, design and implementation of the duplication of the 657km long Pacific Highway from Hexham to the Queensland border between 1996 and 2020.
Client name
Transport for NSW
