History of the F3-M2 Link

The history of the F3-M2 link road goes back a long way. STEP has been active particularly in regards to the now abandoned B2-B3 link (which was to have used the Lane Cove Valley freeway corridor).

The Lane Cove Valley freeway corridor dated back to 1945 when a 'scenic route', suggested by council two decades earlier, was written into the Department of Main Roads scheme for the area.

In 1988, when the North West Sector Road Needs Study was issued by Roads and Traffic Authority, the Lane Cove Valley freeway corridor (called the B3 option) was included as one option of nine, linking the F3 to the (at that stage proposed) M2.

In April 1989, the B3 option was chosen by the Roads and Traffic Authority as the preferred option. This decision was made despite an enormous amount of opposition from local residents, and other groups who treasured the bushland under threat. In response to the announcement, twelve community groups and numerous individuals banded together and succeeded in having the corridor abandoned in 1996.

In January 2001, John Anderson, Federal Minister for Transport and Regional services announced a $1 million study into the proposed link from the F3 to the M2.

In March 2002 the Federal Government commissioned a study into a proposed freeway linking the current F3 and M2 freeways in Sydney's north-west.

On 25 July 2003 it was announced that four options had been identified, all of which will mostly be in tunnel. The closing date for public comment was Friday 3 October 2003.

STEP is opposing a link road on the grounds that it will generate unsustainable levels of traffic in the region, particularly if the link swings towards our already congested city.