Oxley Highway flood recovery

Reviewed

Project overview

The NSW Government is funding essential maintenance work on the Oxley Highway at Mount Seaview to provide continued access through natural disaster affected areas.

Sign up for SMS alerts. Please note, these alerts will only advise about road closures related to the restoration work at Mount Seaview.

 

Latest news

March 2024 - Road closure lifted at Mount Seaview

Transport for NSW is pleased to inform you that the restoration work on Slips 4 and 22 are complete. The temporary road closure has been lifted, the road will remain open at all times until further notice. We are continuing to plan for the next stage of restoration work and will keep the community informed.

Jan 2024 - Temporary road closures, Oxley Highway, Mount Seaview

Transport for NSW is continuing major restoration work on the Oxley Highway at Mount Seaview to return the road to pre-2021/2022 flood condition.

As part of this work, the Oxley Highway will be closed temporarily between Knodingbul and Forbes River roads from Tuesday 30 January, while we carry out restoration work at Slip 4 and Slip 22. 

Access to Mount Seaview Road will be maintained for motorists and residents after clearing the Forbes River Road checkpoint.

We expect the full road closures to be in place until about Easter 2024

Read the latest project update for more information. (PDF, 258.39 KB)
 

Road closure times

The Oxley Highway will be closed temporarily from:

Tuesday to Thursday, 7am to 4.30pm and Fridays, 7am to 3pm.

No closures will be carried out on Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays or any public holidays.

 

Community event exception dates

Transport for NSW has worked closely with council to minimise the impact of road closures on important local community events. 

To assist road users wanting to use the highway to attend these events the Oxley Highway will remain open with traffic control in place on:

  • Friday 9 February (Walcha Cup Race Meeting)
  • Friday 16 February (Walcha Antique Machinery and Truck Show)
  • Friday 23 February (Red Hot Summer, Port Macquarie) 
  • Thursday 7 and Friday 8 March (Walcha Show)

Dec 2023 – Changed traffic conditions on the Oxley Highway 

Motorists are advised from 3pm Friday, 15 December the temporary road closures, which have been in place Tuesdays to Fridays, will be lifted. We thank the community for their co-operation and patience during this important work.

The Oxley Highway will return to single lane alternating flow traffic arrangements during the NSW summer school holidays with full road closures to resume Tuesday, 30 January 2024.

We expect the full road closures to be in place until about Easter 2024.

Christmas shutdown – traffic changes

All non-essential work will stop from Saturday, 23 December 2023 with work restarting on Monday, 8 January 2024.

Traffic control will remain in place during this time with single lane alternating flows and reduced speed limits for the safety of road users.

Motorists should plan their journeys and allow extra travel time.

View the December 2023 project notification (PDF, 341.17 KB) for more information.

Oct 2023 - Temporary road closures from 24 October

Motorists are advised that the Oxley Highway will be temporarily closed every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday between 7am and 4.30pm and every Friday between 7am and 3pm from 24 October. The road closure points are at Knodingbul Road (travelling east) and Forbes River Road (travelling west). Please refer to map below.

Access to Mount Seaview Road will be maintained for motorists and residents after clearing the Forbes River Road checkpoint.

The Oxley Highway will return to single lane alternating flow traffic arrangements during the NSW summer school holidays with full road closures to resume Tuesday, 30 January 2024.

We expect the full road closures to be in place until about Easter 2024.

Special Event Exemptions – The Oxley Highway will remain open to accommodate the events listed below:

  • Thursday 16 and Friday 17 November (Walcha Motorcycle Rally)
  • Thursday 30 November and Friday 1 December (NSW State Cup Touch Football)
  • Friday 9 February (Walcha Cup Race Meeting)
  • Friday 16 February (Walcha Antique Machinery and Truck Show)
  • Thursday 7 and Friday 8 March (Walcha Show)

View the October 2023 project notification (PDF, 286.67 KB) for more information

Sep 2023 - Progress continues at Slip 5 and 6 with planning at Slip 4 and 22 almost complete

Restoration work on the Oxley Highway at Mount Seaview continues with stabilisation work progressing at Slip 5 and 6. Planning for Slip 4 and Slip 22 is almost complete with construction expected to start in mid-October 2023. To carry out this work safely full road closures will be required. This work is expected to take about 6 months to complete, weather permitting.

View the September 2023 project notification (PDF, 539.51 KB) for more information.

Apr 2023 - Restoration work continues on the Oxley Highway

Major restoration work continues on the Oxley Highway at Mount Seaview continues with work at Slip 2, Slip 8, Gabions Corner and Dewars Slip (Stage 1) recently completed. 

Culvert replacement work between Mount Seaview and Gingers Creek began in April and planning continues for future stages with work expected to commence on Slip 5 and 6 in June 2023.

View the April 2023 project notification (PDF, 510.53 KB) for more information.

Jan 2023 - Work to recommence on the Oxley Highway, Mount Seaview

Motorists are advised that work on the Oxley Highway will recommence from Monday, 9 January. The road will remain open with some sections under single lane alternating traffic flow and reduced speed limits for the safety of workers and road users. Motorists should plan their journey and allow extra travel time.

Dec 2022 - Changed traffic conditions on the Oxley Highway

Motorists are advised that from Friday 16 December at 3pm, the temporary road closures which have been in place Tuesdays to Fridays will be lifted. Traffic control will remain in place, with some sections under single lane alternating traffic flow and reduced speed limits for the safety of road users. Motorists should plan their journeys and allow extra travel time.

End of year shutdown

All non-essential work will stop from Saturday 24 December 2022 with work restarting Monday 9 January 2023.

Progress update on the restoration work

We were able to achieve significant progress on six slips around Mount Seaview. This work is expected to remove three sets of traffic lights from the highway by the end of February 2023, reducing journey delays.

Oct 2022 - Temporary road closures until 16 December 2022

Motorists are advised that the Oxley Highway will be temporarily closed every Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday between 7am and 4.30pm and every Friday between 7am and 3pm. The road closure points are at Knodingbul Road (travelling east) and Forbes River Road (travelling west). Please refer to map below.

Special event - November 2022

The Oxley Highway will remain open on Thursday 17 and Friday 18 November to accommodate the Walcha Motorcycle Rally.

Special event - December 2022

The Oxley Highway will remain open on Thursday 1 and Friday 2 December to accommodate the Touch Football State Finals.

Project information

Background

Heavy rainfall in March 2021 caused significant damage to the Oxley Highway, with around 70 landslips occurring, 10 of which are major. Transport for NSW (Transport) in partnership with specialist contractors carried out immediate repair and restoration work to restore access on this essential roadway.

The section of the highway between Yarras and Mount Seaview was reopened in May 2021 and the section between Mount Seaview and Gingers Creek Roadhouse in July 2021, with a few sections remaining under single lane, alternating flow arrangement.

Transport is continuing restoration and improvement work to reinstate the road to pre-2021 flood condition. Work will take about two years to complete.

During this time there will be periods where we need to fully close the road to carry out repair and restoration work safely or for further emergency work. We will endeavour to provide as much notice as possible to the community.

Up-coming work and traffic changes

  • In progress - Slip 2A, B, C, Slip 8, Gabion Corner and Dewars Slip
  • Early 2023 - Slip 1, 5 and 6
  • Mid 2023 - Slip 4, 17, 22 and Stopping bay
  • Early 2024 - Slip 3 and 7

Note: These time frames and closures are indicative only. Traffic changes will be in place for the duration of the restoration work and may vary for each site.


Project documents

Some documents on this page may not comply with accessibility requirements (WCAG).

If you are having trouble accessing information in these documents, please contact us.

 

Project notifications

Fact sheets

Media releases

Contact us

For further information about this project, please contact:

Phone: 1800 653 092

Email: region.north@transport.nsw.gov.au

Mail: The Oxley Highway Flood Recovery, Transport for NSW, PO Box 576 Grafton NSW 2460