This article needs to be updated. The reason given is: Restructure to better reflect Birdiya Drive being a separate road now. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(January 2023)
Riverside DriveinPerth, Western Australia, is a road on the northern side of Perth Water. It was built on reclaimed land in the 1930s, and links The Causeway to the Narrows Bridge.
1950s plan for a bus station on the Esplanade which shows the then alignment of Riverside Drive. River reclamation during the construction of the Mitchell Freeway realigned Riverside Drive to run in a more southerly route.
Riverside Drive which was planned in 1903, but which was not completed until the 1930s due to the need to have reclaimed land on which to build the road.[3][4]
Construction of the road in the 1930s was seen as a threat to the lightering trade on the Swan River between Perth and Fremantle.[5]
In the early 20th century the name of the road carried beyond its current length; proposed river-side roads were mentioned for South Perth[6] and the northern shore of the Swan River as far as Peppermint Grove.[7]
Crowds on Riverside Drive for the 2015 Australia Day celebrations
Plans to widen were proposed in 1985 and in 1986.[8][9][10]
Significant changes in the landscaping along Riverside Drive were made in 1999.[11]
At times of heavy rains and the Swan River flooding, Riverside Drive has been affected seriously,[12] in the 1930s and 1940s[13][14][15][16][17] as well as more recently.[18]
Riverside Drive was closed for the Australia Day celebrations and fireworks on 26 January 2014, however unlike other roads in the area, it remained closed between Barrack Street and William Street due to the construction of Elizabeth Quay.[19][20]
Several groups and individuals have previously raised concerns about the impact on the Perth road network resulting from the diversion of Riverside Drive traffic around the new Elizabeth Quay inlet.[21][22][23]
The mayors of seven surrounding local government areas issued a joint statement stressing the importance of completing certain roadworks prior to the diversion of Riverside Drive.[24] The Graham Farmer Freeway has had additional lanes installed in the Northbridge Tunnel to encourage motorists to bypass the city. The Royal Automobile Club raised early concerns that loss of the emergency lanes might affect emergency response times.[25] Although a tunnel, either under the inlet or as part of one of the suggested alternative schemes, has previously been dismissed, the suggestion that a tunnel might be built at some time in the future has not been totally dismissed.[26] In January 2014 the Opposition again raised concerns that the closure would lead to further congestion, but the Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority were confident that drivers would adapt to the change.[27] In preparation for the closure, Riverside Drive had been reduced by one lane through that section.[27]
On 4 November 2021, the western section of Riverside Drive was formally renamed Birdiya Drive to prevent confusion around which section of Riverside Drive to follow. Birdiya means "elder" or "leader" in the Noongar language and was chosen following consultation with the City of Perth Aboriginal Elders Advisory Group.[2]
^Perth Central Business District(PDF) (Map). Cartography by Western Australian Land Information Authority. Government of Western Australia. Archived from the original(PDF) on 16 May 2013.
^Harvey, Ben and Alex Massey (2011). Waterfront traffic woes surface – The West Australian. Published 17 February 2011. Retrieved 24 March 2012
^Parker, Gareth and Beatrice Thomas (2011). Lib MP urges tunnel under river inlet – The West Australian. Published 10 November 2011. Retrieved 24 March 2012
State Route 5
Plain Street (State Route 65)
Barrack Street (State Route 53)
Mitchell Freeway (State Route 2)
