Level crossing removals aren’t just a way to make transport options safer and less congested – they can also make them greener.
Crews working on the Diggers Rest level crossing removal project last year successfully trialled a new road surface asphalt that has cut carbon emissions and could transform how roads are built on major projects.
While asphalt is central to our transport needs - from the roads we drive or cycle on, to the parking spaces we leave our cars in – it's also one of the largest contributors to carbon emissions in infrastructure construction, responsible for about 12% of upfront emissions.
This is largely due to the use of petroleum-based binders typically used to hold it together and to reduce wear and tear.
To help tackle this challenge, the Watsons Road, Diggers Rest level crossing removal project team trialled an innovative new type of asphalt, with promising results.
At 2 locations across the Watsons Road site, the project team used asphalt made with biogenic bitumen – a binder created from renewable biological sources such as wood, straw, animal waste and fats, algae derived oils, and biowaste.
The trial was successful, delivering an innovative asphalt mix that achieved a 20% reduction in carbon emissions. The biogenic bitumen asphalt performed on par with standard asphalt, with no noticeable difference in odour, constructability or overall performance.
The trial is among the first in Australia, and at the time of implementation, only 7 successful trials of the product have been recorded nationally. But the push for smarter, lower-carbon construction didn’t stop there.
During construction of the new Golden Way road bridge in Diggers Rest, the project team replaced steel straps with synthetic straps embedded into layers of soil to create a robust and stable retaining wall solution.
Substituting steel straps, which require consumption of a resource-intensive material and create a higher embodied carbon footprint, with the EcoStrap HA synthetic straps reduced the carbon footprint of the retaining wall straps by 75%.
Level Crossing Removal Project Sustainability Manager Lachlan Walker said the synthetic straps offered additional benefits beyond sustainability.
"It gives us the ability to use a different mix of backfill soil, including reusing soil from site, to refill excavated areas,” he said.
The Old Calder Highway level crossing was removed and the Golden Way road bridge opened in June 2025, and the Watsons Road level crossing was removed in November 2025.