
The NSW Government has committed funding for the planned upgrade to improve safety at this intersection and reduce crashes.
Latest news
APR 2022Detours in place
Right-turns into and out of Houston Mitchell Drive have been restricted since Monday 20 September, and will be in place until mid-May, weather permitting. Work was expected to be completed in late-February, however due to weather delays, work will now be completed in mid-May, weather permitting.
More informationMotorists wanting to travel north from Houston Mitchell Drive will need turn left to travel south along the Pacific Highway to Bago Road interchange at Herons Creek before turning north (approximately 7.5 kilometres one way).
Alternatively, motorists travelling to Port Macquarie from Bonny Hills can use Ocean Drive. Northbound motorists accessing Bonny Hills from the Pacific Highway should exit at Ocean Drive interchange at Kew (approximately 15 kilometres south of Houston Mitchell Drive) and travel via Laurieton and North Haven.
An alternative route for northbound motorists accessing Bonny Hills from the Pacific Highway is via the Port Macquarie interchange (intersection of the Pacific Highway and Oxley Highway) where they can perform a U-turn to travel south along the Pacific Highway and turn left into Houston Mitchell Dive.
Southbound motorists will be able to access Bonny Hills from the Pacific Highway at all times, however are likely to encounter traffic control during work hours.
Cyclists will also be restricted from right-turns into and out of Houston Mitchell Drive and travelling southbound on the Pacific Highway beyond Ryans Road. A cyclist movement plan will be in place during work.
Motorists are advised to plan ahead as the detour is expected to add extra travel time to journeys.
Work will be carried out from 7am to 5pm Monday to Friday with some night work required on occasion.
Lane closures and a stop/slow traffic arrangement will be in place during work hours as required for the safety of road users and workers.
For more information view the detour map (PDF, 1.49Mb).
APR 2022Changes to school bus timetables
During the work at the intersection of Houston Mitchell Drive with the Pacific Highway, detours will be in place for all vehicles. To ensure children continue to arrive to school on time, Busways will be changing the school bus timetable for the morning service to school bus 9, 26 and 11.
More informationThese changes will remain in place from 28 January 2022 (first day of Term 1) until mid-May, weather permitting.
For more information on the new bus timetable please contact Busways Customer Service on 1300 69 2929 or infoline@busways.com.au. You can also visit Busways website at www.busways.com.au.
We apologise for any inconvenience this change may cause and thank you for your patience.
Project information
The Pacific Motorway is the main north-south arterial connection between Sydney and Brisbane. It is a major freight route and provides a high speed road environment.
Houston Mitchell Drive is a local collector road which provides access from the motorway to the Lake Cathie, Bonny Hills and new coastal land releases.
This area is expected to experience high population growth in the short to midterm increasing traffic demand on Houston Mitchell Drive intersection. Houston Mitchell Drive is also utilised as an alternative route to Ocean Drive to access the regional centre of Port Macquarie.
Council have recently upgraded sections of Houston Mitchell Drive which makes it a more desirable route for commuters.
This next stage of the planned upgrade will help to further improve road safety at the intersection, reducing both crash occurrence and severity.
Starting later this month (August 2021), the next stage of safety improvement work at the intersection of the Pacific Highway and Houston Mitchell Drive will include:
- Installing a left turn deceleration lane on the Pacific Highway into Houston Mitchell Drive for southbound motorists
- Installing an acceleration lane on the Pacific Highway for southbound motorists turning left out of Houston Mitchell Drive
- Widening of the road shoulders for motorists turning in and out of Houston Mitchell Drive
- Installing new safety barriers and line marking
Project documents
Project notifications
File | Title | Size |
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August 2021 project notification
Safety upgrade planned for Pacific Highway and Houston Mitchell Drive intersection, south of Port Macquarie. |
340Kb |
Detour map
File | Title | Size |
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September 2021 detour map
Safety improvements – intersection of Pacific Highway and Houston Mitchell Drive, south of Port Macquarie. |
1.49Mb |
Media releases
File | Title | Size |
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3 September 2021
Work Starting on Pacific Highway intersection at Houston Mitchell Drive |
24.1Kb |
Contact us
For further information about the safety improvements or to provide feedback please contact:
Phone: 0429 233 146 (business hours – Moses Verevakabau, Project Engineer)
Email: mosese.k.verevakabau@transport.nsw.gov.au
Mail: Moses Verevakabau, Transport for NSW, PO Box 576 Grafton NSW 2460