Emerson Crossing
Encyclopedia
South Road, Adelaide
South Road is a major north–south conduit in Adelaide, South Australia. Also known as Main South Road, it is Adelaide's most important arterial road.- Route :...
, Cross Road
Cross Road, Adelaide
Cross Road is a major arterial road that travels east-west through the inner southern suburbs of the Australian city of Adelaide. Its western terminus is at Anzac Highway, travelling east and ending at Glen Osmond and the Adelaide Hills, joining the junction of Glen Osmond Road, Portrush Road, and...
and the Noarlunga Centre railway line in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. South Road crosses north-south over both Cross Road and the diagonal railway via a large bridge built in the early 1980s. This was done in an attempt to cater for the ever increasing amount of traffic which went through the intersection and was constantly congested during peak hour times. Emerson Railway Station is located in the north eastern corner of the crossing. The train station and crossing are both named after Emerson Street, a small dead end road just north of the intersection along South Road, in the suburb of Black Forest
Black Forest, South Australia
Black Forest is an inner southern suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in the City of Unley.-History:There have been three Post Offices named Black Forest; the first opened on 1 September 1899 and was renamed Glandore in 1915, the second opened on 10 November 1947 and was renamed...
.
The grade separation at Emerson Crossing was achieved by a 3 span bridge. The centre span is 40 metres, with a 31.2 metre span each end. The abutments and embankments were constructed using the reinforced earth system and completed in 1983 according to project information sheet No. 4 August 1985 issued by the Reinforced Earth Company Australia.
The main bridge work was awarded to A.W. Baulderstone Pty Ltd. It was commenced in January 1984 and was completed in 13 months.
The overpass incorporates U-turn facilities known as 'Texas Turns".
It was officially opened jointly by John Bannon
John Bannon
John Charles Bannon AO is a former Australian politician. He was the 39th Premier of South Australia, leading the Labor Party to government at the 1982 election. The Bannon Labor government was re-elected at the 1985 election and the 1989 election...
(the Premier of South Australia) and Peter Morris
Peter Morris (politician)
Peter Frederick Morris was an Australian politician.Morris was born in Sydney and was an alderman on the Newcastle City Council from 1968 to 1974. He won the House of Representatives seat of Shortland in 1972. He was appointed Minister for Transport in the first Hawke Ministry in March 1983. In...
(the Federal
Government of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
Minister of Transport) on 14 March 1985. This was reported by the journal Highway Engineering in Australia February- March 1985.
The overpass was designed by the Highways Department of South Australia.