Build it and they will come

The rumours are true. I’m an infrastructure geek. I love learning about major civil engineering works. Over the years, I’ve blogged about structures like the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge, the world’s longest single-span suspension bridge, the Panama Canal, and Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building.

Currently, a couple of construction projects in New South Wales are firm favourites. That is, the Coffs Harbour bypass and the M1 Motorway Extension to Raymond Terrace. Once completed you’ll be able to drive from Sydney to Brisbane without encountering a single stop sign or traffic light. In fact, following the recent completion of the Northconnex tunnel in northern Sydney, you’ll be able to do the same from Melbourne to Brisbane.

Last December, Garry and I drove past both projects on our way to our holiday in Ballina. I was surprised (and delighted) to see an elevated roadway rising on the Raymond Terrace bypass. It’s part of a 2.6-kilometre viaduct across the Hunter River and surrounding floodplain. The scale of this roadway was impressive, to say the least.

Once completed, this 15-kilometre motorway extension will remove five sets of traffic lights and cut 15 minutes or more from travel times during peak periods. For years, we’ve dreaded this section of road as traffic slows to a crawl for kilometres in the run-up to the existing river crossing.

Likewise, the Coffs Harbour bypass will involve 14 kilometres of dual carriageway and three tunnels, diverting traffic around this north-coast city. Last December, massive earthworks were underway at either end of the bypass. The Coffs Harbour bypass is scheduled to open in late 2027, while the M1 extension at Raymond Terrace will open in 2028.

However, I won't force Garry to make a special trip to experience the roads when they open. In 1998, I recall taking a detour while driving to the Hunter Valley with my friend Michele to see the recently opened M1 motorway extension to Tomago. Years later, she drove me across Hong Kong's recently opened Tsing Ma Bridge in her employer's convertible simply because she knew I'd relish the experience. Halfway across the bridge, its presentation floodlights timed out for the night, leaving us in total darkness.

 Lake George Dual Carriageway: Shutterstock

When I relocated to Australia in 1990, things were very different. Back then, the Pacific Highway was considered one of Australia's most deadly roads thanks to horrific head-on collisions including the Kempsey bus crash that killed 35 people and injured 41 the year before I arrived. 

The equally busy Hume Highway between Sydney and Melbourne was also incomplete with lengthy sections lacking a dual carriageway. I recall the opening of bypasses at Goulburn and Mittagong in 1992, plus the final section of missing road near Holbrook, which opened in 2013.

Likewise, a dual carriageway on the Federal Highway between Goulburn and Canberra was well underway, including an elevated roadway along the shores of Lake George. Fast forward 35 years, and the dual carriageway is now progressively extending south along the Pacific Highway towards Batemans Bay. I love it. Sad but true.

Where to next?

We have plenty of travel coming up. First, I’ll fly to Melbourne at the end of the month to set up our stand for another Australian Toy Fair. Then in April, Garry and I fly to Bangkok to meet one of our largest suppliers. We last visited their factory in 2016 and haven’t seen them in person since they stopped exhibiting at Nurmberg in 2020.

We also have Matt and Shelley scheduled to visit for a week in early April. We’ll take them to the airport when they leave and depart for Bangkok shortly after. While they’re in town I’ve booked all of us in for an overnight stay at Taronga Zoo’s luxury Wildlife Retreat. I scored a great deal on rooms before Christmas, a 30% discount, which made the whole experience way more affordable.

Finally, my EO Forum has scheduled its annual retreat this year in Queenstown. We’ll be off to New Zealand for three nights in late June. I’m just praying it won’t be bitterly cold.

What a difference a decade makes

We’re back from another year walking the halls of Spielwarenmesse in Nuremberg. It’s hard to believe we’ve been going to Germany every year since 2016 (COVID hiatus aside). This year’s event was as busy as ever. According to our iPhone apps we’ve walked more than 75,000 steps over six days.

Sadly, we missed out on our First-class points upgrade coming home this year. However, we did secure the first two bulkhead seats in Business that offered extra leg room, so all wasn’t lost. This year we caught a late flight from Frankfurt to London and stopped overnight before continuing to Sydney.

We made the most of our stopover with a day trip to Windsor. The day dawned with clear skies and sunshine making it ideal for some outdoor activity. We arrived in Windsor shortly after noon. We walked along the Thames before embarking on The Long Walk. This is an arrow-straight path extending 4.2 km from Windsor Castle to Snow Hill, home to an elevated statue of George the Third on horseback. 

The walk took more than an hour each way. Hundreds, if not thousands, of people were doing the same thing. The statue on Snow Hill was impressive up close. The monumental bronze statue is larger than life size, about 7.9 metres high, and is mounted on a rugged stone plinth 8 metres high. The view from its base, looking back to the castle, is impressive, to say the least.

However, one unforgettable sight captured our attention. Windsor Castle lies directly under the flight path of Heathrow's southern runway. As a result, low-flying passenger jets descend like clockwork over the northern end of The Long Walk every few minutes. The stream of aircraft was unrelenting. I've read that up to 37 flights an hour pass overhead. I'm surprised the Queen enjoyed staying at Windsor as much as she did.

Once we’d completed the walk, we returned to London. With an hour to fill before heading to Heathrow, we decided to try out Vagabond, a wine bar on the Grand Canal we’d spotted the previous week. We used the bar's quirky self-vending wine wall to toast another successful business trip. We've returned home with two new brands and a greater appreciation for everything we’ve achieved over the last decade.

We’ve developed some wonderful friendships with people from around the world. Our suppliers have become friends, and we regularly encounter people at the show and the airport who treat us with enormous respect. We’ve certainly become known as established players in our own right.

This was evident on our final night in Nuremberg when we organized dinner for an eclectic group of industry colleagues. Our table included a supplier’s trade show team, distributors of similar brands and other industry contacts. Nations represented at dinner included Australia, The Netherlands, Canada, the UK, Belgium, and Italy (plus two expats, one from New Zealand and one from Ireland).

It’s hard to believe it’s been ten years this month since we met John Daniels, Artiwood’s former owner, and decided to buy his business. What a ride it's been!