1998

The Roads and Traffic Authority announced preliminary designs for a tunnel linking Darling Harbour and Kings Cross, called the Cross City Tunnel. The proposal was opened up to community comments and suggestions.

1999

Following community consultation the RTA established the current design, comprising of twin two-lane road tunnels for traffic travelling east-west across the city. It would be constructed to link the Western and Eastern Distributors. The air from the tunnels would be ventilated through unfiltered emission stacks located at either end, one in Darling Harbour and one in Woolloomooloo.

Residents in Darling Harbour and Woolloomooloo alarmed that the RTA planned to use the same filtration techniques as proposed in the M5 East tunnel, a Cross City Tunnel Group was formed.

18 October - Clover Moore, Member for Bligh makes a submission to Carl Scully, on behalf of constituents who are angry about the unfiltered tunnel ventilation stacks in the inner city for the Eastern Distributor and the proposed Cross City Tunnel.
Clover Moore:
"The EPA reports that nitrogen oxides, caused by vehicle emissions, continue increasing, while ozone and fine particulate matter from vehicle exhausts remain serious concerns. There is increasing international concern from environmentalists, residents, health researchers over increasing scientific evidence about the dangers of vehicle emissions. Despite this, the RTA continues to support large-scale freeway developments which induce increased traffic, and it fails to give priority to improved public transport, cycleways and pedestrian access." To see the Submission in full click here.

2000

2 May – Rally outside Parliament House in Macquarie Street, attended by residents affected by the M5 East tunnel, Eastern Distributor, Lane Cove Tunnel and Cross City Tunnel. Speaking on behalf of the Cross City Tunnel Group was Sandra Handley.

June
Holmes Air Sciences began a study for the RTA monitoring air quality, established as part of the Cross City Tunnel project development process. Monitoring commenced in June, and is on-going, being conducted at two locations near Darling Harbour, to the immediate west of the Sydney CBD. The sites are located at the Sydney Police Station on Day Street and the Sydney Art Gallery on Harris Street, Ultimo. The focus of the study is on the level of concentrations of carbon monoxide (CO), oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and particulate matter (PM10 ) at the two sites for June and July, 2000.

July
On the 27 July 2000, the full details of the Cross City Tunnel proposal Environmental Impact Statement were released to the public. Under the final version of the proposal, there would be only one 39m stack, not two, located next to IMAX at Darling Harbour, adjacent to Harbour Street between the viaducts of the Western Distributor. This ignoring the advice provided by international experts at the recent RTA $210, 000 workshop that this system was an outdated, expensive and risky way to treat vehicle exhaust emissions. The EIS was displayed in 17 locations around Sydney.

6 October – The Nature Conservation Council of NSW's transport devision GreenWays combine with the Total Environment Centre to make a Submission in response to the proposed Cross City Tunnel Environmental Impact Statement. The submission outlines its position as opposed to the building of the tunnel, arguing it does not adequately provide solutions to Sydney's transport problems. It opts for public transport alternatives that were not given consideration in the EIS. It is also critical of the proposed ventilation system via a stack, and the massive amounts of energy the tunnel will use to run.
To download the submission (Microsoft Word Document) click here.

11 October - The Residents Against Polluting Stacks release their Submission in response to the Environmental Impact Statement on the Cross City Tunnel. Click here to read the submission.