ENGEO provided geotechnical information to inform the ground model used in detailed design of more than 17km of motorway outside of Rockhampton, Australia. Rockhampton is a city located in Central Queensland and lies on the Fitzroy River. In response to increased traffic and growing demand for roads in the area, Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) began design for the Rockhampton Ring Road. The project comprises the construction of 17km of dual carriageway motorway bypassing Rockhampton and includes the design of over 25 overpasses and bridges, as well as significant earthworks. The geotechnical investigation for the Rockhampton Ring Road was particularly interesting and challenging due to the complex geology in the Rockhampton region.
ENGEO worked as part of a specialist team, where the team had to carry out site management for multiple drill crews, geotechnical borehole logging and sample collection for the detailed design investigation.
In addition to challenges presented by the complex geology of the region, this project came with some challenges unique to 2020. The project occurred over a 6 month period during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in Australia. The site was a significant distance from Brisbane, which was difficult with increased travel restrictions, and health and safety requirements. Due to the large scale of the project, minimum 10 hours days were required and teams worked ten day on four day off rotations.
ENGEO provided excellent geotechnical logs in accordance with Australian standards and resulted in a streamlined quality assurance process from TMR. ENGEO geologists excelled in the site management aspect of their role and impressed TMR. This resulted in ENGEO being asked by TMR to carry out site management and logging for complex barge drilling in the Fitzroy River, supplying fulltime geologist supervision on a continuous 7-day roster.
