Media invited to join ElectraNet and Lord Mayor in bridging the gap at Bonython Park

The media are invited to attend the opening of a new pedestrian and cycle bridge, Karntu Waadlakatha – Lightning Bridge – officiated by the Right Honourable Stephen Yarwood, Lord Mayor of the City of Adelaide and Mr Ian Stirling, Chief Executive Officer of ElectraNet on Thursday 12 July 2012, at 11am. 

An Indigenous Smoking Ceremony and Welcome to Country will be taking place on the day, as part of the proceedings. The bridge is located at the northern end of Bonython Park, and can be accessed through Park Terrace on the day. 

The architecturally designed bridge was built as part of the Adelaide Central Reinforcement (ACR) project, which has reinforced power supply to the City of Adelaide since April 2012 and connects existing pathways, providing a safe and convenient river crossing for commuters. 

Lord Mayor Stephen Yarwood said, ‘We are pleased to be working in partnership with ElectraNet to improve accessibility in the Park Lands.  It’s a great recreational feature for people to use and that enhances the Park Lands cycling network.’

The ACR project represents an investment of nearly $180M into the South Australian high-voltage electricity network to secure the electricity supply and help facilitate the long-term growth and development of Adelaide and the South Australian economy.  

Mr Stirling said, ‘This forms part of ElectraNet’s $1 billion five year network investment plans for South Australia and also represents the most significant boost of high-voltage transmission capacity into the Adelaide CBD in the last 25 years.

It means that the City of Adelaide now has additional capacity to meet the electricity demands of the city and the southern suburbs, and ensure continued reliability and security of transmission supply now and into the future.

The continued support of the community and businesses is what enabled the ACR project to achieve successful completion in December last year, on time, on budget and to industry best practice standards.  

‘ElectraNet is committed to supporting the communities in areas where our transmission assets are located, through initiatives that have widespread benefit and contribute to improvements in community life and environmental sustainability. As such, we would today, like to transfer Karntu Waadlakatha – Lightning Bridge – over to the Adelaide City Council, for the enjoyment of the community,’ Mr Stirling said.