Custom Freeway Guide Signs

Jaybro supplied Georgiou Group with a custom guide sign for the M1 Pacific Motorway upgrade.

THE PROJECT

Jaybro supplied Georgiou Group with a custom guide sign for the M1 Pacific Motorway upgrade.

Georgiou Group has been awarded the contract to deliver upgrades to the M1 Pacific Motorway at the Weakleys Drive and John Renshaw Drive intersection near Newcastle, NSW.

In this case the intersection is one of 3 projects under the $391 million M1 Pacific Motorway Upgrade. This project is jointly funded by the Australian and NSW Governments.

Our customer, Georgiou Group, was contracted to carry out the upgrades at the Beresfield intersection so as to better the traffic flow. To begin with, workers would replace the existing roundabout with traffic lights. In addition, the number of lanes would be increased. This would result in the traffic capacity being significantly expanded around this busy intersection at Beresfield.

This section of road supports a large volume of freight traffic between the Central and North coasts of NSW. More than 70,000 motorists use the M1 Pacific Motorway every day. In addition, over 7,000 freight vehicles use the M1. Once workers complete the upgrade works, the intersection will be able to support increased traffic well into the future.

Georgiou Group will complete a range of works aimed to increase traffic flow and also provide safer entry and exit to the motorway. These including replacing the roundabout with traffic lights, creating 2 through lanes on all approaches and additional turning lanes on all approaches. Similarly, the works include two right turn lanes from the motorway to John Renshaw Drive, upgrade of slip lanes to improve safety, and extending 2 northbound lanes on Weakleys Drive.

Major construction work began in March 2018 and as a result the project is now nearing completion. Moreover, workers now needed to replace the existing signage to guide motorists through the new intersection.

THE CHALLENGES

Georgiou Group approached Jaybro with specific requirements for a custom guide sign to communicate the new turning and through lanes to motorists.

As with all signs created for NSW’s Roads and Maritime Services, a host of material, visibility and design specifications and standards needed to be met. Therefore, Georgiou Group needed a supplier who could produce a compliant product with quick turnaround time. The project managers also sought a supplier who had the capabilities to complete the large format production of this sign which would ultimately span three lanes.

JAYBRO'S SOLUTION

Jaybro supplied Georgiou Group with a sign that precisely matched their requirements. At over 11 metres long, this green retro reflective custom guide sign is our biggest one yet.

Our specialist sign production team manufactured this custom guide sign for Georgiou Group. Guide signs indicate to motorists where to go and what is in a specific direction. Jaybro needed to meet the requirements laid out in the various Australian Standards for road signs and the RMS guidelines on signposting. With this in mind, high quality Class 1 reflective films were used to maximise safety for drivers.

Class 1 reflective films are best suited for high intensity reflective signage and are approved for highway and motorway signage in Australia. They’re also commonly used for ambulances, vehicle signs and any general signage applications where light needs to be reflected from wide angles.

Meticulously following the specs from Georgiou Group and the RMS, our team put together this 11.5m x 3.5m sign for the new intersection. Furthermore, the custom guide sign needed to be braced for strength. Our team applied a series of aluminium reinforcing strips to the rear of the sign to minimise the effects of wind and weather and assist with supporting its weight.

Once again following the customer’s specifications, our production team carefully loaded the sign onto a truck ensuring it travelled upright. Meticulous packaging ensured it arrived in one piece, ready for workers to erect.

The Weakleys Drive and John Renshaw Drive intersection will now offer clear direction to the tens of thousands of motorists that use the M1 every day.

The Beresfield project is due to be completed in 2019.

KEY DATA

System used: Custom made motorway guide sign

Project: M1 Pacific Motorway Upgrade

Location: Beresfield, NSW, Australia

Time Period: Delivered November 2018

Customer: Georgiou Group

PRODUCT SPECS

Length: 11542mm

Height: 3500mm

Finish: Retro reflective graphics

Material: Aluminium