SOME time in the next few days commuters will start using the only big Sydney transport project completed in the life of the Keneally government, the much-maligned duplication of the Iron Cove Bridge.
The Premier, Kristina Keneally, has not committed to be there at the opening, nor has the Roads Minister, David Borger, but motorists could be driving across the bridge as soon as the weekend, unencumbered by the ribbon-cutting ceremonies that typically adorn the opening of these hefty pieces of public engineering.
The main criticism of the bridge, rebadged during construction as the Inner West Busway, is that it will do little to alleviate the traffic crush along Victoria Road on either side of Iron Cove.
Instead, say the critics who have dogged the project since it was given final approval two years ago, it will simply alleviate the flow of traffic along the bridge.
The Roads and Traffic Authority had been planning to open the bridge for traffic tonight, and had placed advertisements in today's Herald to alert commuters. But those ads were cancelled last night.
To make the bridge work smoothly, from Monday the RTA will close four bus stops on Victoria Road during the morning peak between 6am and 10am.
The citybound stops at Seymour Street and Park Avenue will close, along with the westbound stops at Church Street and Tavistock Street. A new bus bay will open at Cary Street from Monday catering for citybound buses during the morning peak.
A spokesman for Action for Public Transport, Jim Donovan, said the bus stop closures were just the latest inconvenience caused by the duplication. ''It's a busway, and buses work by stopping,'' Mr Donovan said.
The bridge would do little to alleviate the traffic bottleneck on Victoria Road, he said. ''It will just push it back a bit, or forward, and any proper modelling would have shown that and they have been unable to produce any evidence of benefits.''
The mayor of Leichhardt, Jamie Parker, said the fact that nobody from the state government had committed to being there to mark the initial use of the bridge showed the government's embarrassment at a project that lacked community support.
''It is breathtaking that nobody is taking responsibility because it is the only piece of significant infrastructure that will be completed before the state election,'' Cr Parker, from the Greens, said.
A spokesman for the Roads Minister could not say why the ads were pulled.
''Operational traffic changes on the Iron Cove Bridge are expected later this week, weather permitting,'' the spokesman said. ''These will include westbound traffic being introduced to the new bridge while citybound traffic will use the existing bridge.
''As a large infrastructure project, schedules are subject to change, which can be reflected in changes to advertisements and other elements of the project.''
The Herald asked Mr Borger's office many times this week if the bridge's opening would be marked by a ceremony and if the Premier or the Minister would attend, but received no answer.
The government says the project will provide travel time savings for more than 200,000 bus commuters each week through its dedicated morning peak period bus lane.
