The new section of road at Testers Hollow has opened to traffic, after the new road alignment was connected to the existing road during last weekend's closure of Cessnock Road.
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The new section of Cessnock Road is being built about 1.5 metres higher than the existing road, designed to withstand a one in 20-year flood event.
The project began in November 2020, and the site has flooded twice since - in March 2021 and July this year.
It remains on track for completion in early 2023 (weather permitting), with works to install a safety barrier, complete the asphalt road surface, landscaping and drainage still to come, along with site demobilisation.
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A 40km/h speed limit remains in place on the new section of road as the work continues.
The old road will no longer be used, and will have a channel cut through it to improve drainage and protect the new road during certain flood events.
A Transport for NSW spokesperson said the upgrade will help "reduce the frequency and duration of flood events along Cessnock Road".
"Once complete, the project will decrease the impact of flooding along Cessnock Road at Testers Hollow from a one in two-year flood event to up to one in 20-year flood event," the spokesperson said.
The upgrade comes after the road was cut off four times between 2007 and 2016, with the federal government committing $15 million to the project, and $2 million from the state.
Cliftleigh resident Sonia Warby, who started a petition to raise the road in April 2015, was among the first vehicles to travel across the new road shortly after 5am Monday.
Ms Warby said she was pleased to see the new road open to traffic, but acknowledged that not everyone is happy with the height.
"It was never going to be flood-proof - we know that. It (the plan) was on display, and only a handful of people commented," she said.
"Sixteen days is the average time it's been closed in the big floods; so it (the new road) might mean it's only closed for five-to-six days in the next big flood.
"We might not have got a flood-proof road, but it is definitely an upgrade on what it was."
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