Finally an Eastern Distribubor

There would be two changes of government before construction of the tunnels would begin. The entrance to the north-bound tunnel had been moved south with an entrance at drivers triangle for traffic from Moore Park Road and Anzac Parade and a separate entrance from a sunken carriage-way along South Dowling Street. The Liberal Government had done polling on whether motorists would be prepared to pay a toll and had called for expressions of interest from companies to build a tollway.

Carr won the election in March 1995 promising to build a toll free Distributor and to reimburse commuters for tolls paid on the Western Motorway from the public purse. He reneged on the first promise. A consortium of Leighton Contractors and Macquarie Bank had retained its interest in the project and put a proposal to the Government. The Government accepted the proposal but stipulated that the consortium had to pay for improvements to the Darlinghurst and Surry Hills grid. It was this stipulation that allowed Clover Moore to run amok.

The design was impeccable: the grade-separated carriage-ways for through-traffic allowed South Dowling Street to distribute local traffic into the South Sydney grid "diffusely"; this allowed the intersection at Taylor Square to be simplified by closing Bourke Street on both sides; Crown Street, Darlinghurst would become two-way to distribute local traffic to Surry Hills.

Clover Moore was grandstanding and chairing interminable meetings of concerned citizens, but I thought what harm could she do. I sadly underestimated her capacity for evil.