Current and Upcoming Works

The City of Launceston recognises that people who live in, work in or visit the city of Launceston experience the direct impacts of the Council's construction works including building and road works, as we reinvest in our community infrastructure.

The Council is committed to: 

• limiting disruption as much as reasonably possible 
• clearly communicating the timing, staging and extent of works 
• consulting the community on projects that make changes to existing infrastructure or traffic/parking arrangements
• responding to enquiries and complaints in a timely manner 
• ensuring infrastructure, parking and access is safely reinstated upon completion. 

We remain committed to acting responsibly, transparently, and with consideration for those affected. 

We take the impacts on residents seriously and are committed to working with our contractors to mitigate noise and other impacts as far as practicably possible.

We appreciate your understanding and patience while essential works are completed.  We also ask that you be considerate towards the people working on our infrastructure and respect temporary arrangements to keep everyone safe during works. 

We will communicate information about planned construction works to potentially affected residents, tenants and businesses using multiple channels of communication with sufficient notice provided (longer over holiday periods), except for emergency works.

The information we provide will include:

• The planned location/extent, dates and times of works (noting that works may be subject to delay, for example due to unsuitable weather conditions)
• The likely impacts including, for example, noise, dust, vibration, temporary parking or access restrictions
• A website link and QR code providing more information about the project
• Contact details to request more information or provide feedback.

The City of Launceston places the highest priority on the health and safety of all people including residents, visitors and workers.

Many of the mitigation measures outlined in this document are designed with people's health, safety and wellbeing in mind and are consistent with our responsibilities and legal duties under the Work Health and Safety Act 2012 and related legislation, regulations and industry codes of practice.

The Council's contractors are required to have approved site management plans which include:

• An assessment of all project-related risks and effective mitigation measures, and to keep these under review
• Plans to maintain tidy, well‑managed construction sites in accordance with all applicable health and safety requirements.

If you see something that isn’t safe, you can let us know using the downloadable app Snap, Send, Solve, by phone on (03) 6323 3000 or you can email us at contactus@launceston.tas.gov.au.

The City of Launceston values our environment including parks and gardens, natural bushland, flora and fauna.

We expect our workers and contractors to treat the environment around the construction site with respect, and take reasonable measures to avoid littering, dumping, pollution, spillages and damage.

We strongly encourage construction practices that reduce carbon emissions (e.g. Use of electric vehicles and equipment, recycling etc.) and to sensibly conserve energy and resources.

The City of Launceston requires its workers and contractors to maintain courteous and respectful language and behaviour on our construction sites, and to treat each other and the wider community with respect, in line with the City of Launceston’s Code of Conduct and behaviour policies.

We expect site managers to effectively monitor and manage behaviours including swearing and shouting, littering, where to take breaks, smoking, dress, gestures, harassment, etc.

The City of Launceston and its contractors carrying out construction works are generally required to adhere to the following standard construction hours unless there are exceptional circumstances and these are approved in advance with the Council. The Council may approve longer hours, night-time works or weekend works for certain projects to finish construction in a shorter period.

*Impulsive noise is a sudden, high-intensity burst of sound that occurs over a very short duration.
**Tonal noise is characterized by distinct, continuous frequencies that stand out against background noise and are often perceived as more annoying.

Night-time works are scheduled where necessary to:

• maintain public and worker safety in high‑traffic areas
• minimise daytime congestion/inconvenience within the CBD
• reduce prolonged disruption to businesses, public transport, and emergency access
• complete works within engineering, safety, and contractual requirements.

While night works can increase short‑term disturbance, they often result in a shorter overall construction duration and reduced long‑term impacts to the broader community.

The City of Launceston requires all our workers and contractors to carry out works in accordance with the Environmental Management and Pollution Control Act 1994 (Tas) and the Environmental Management and Pollution Control (Noise) Regulations 2016.

These instruments regulate construction noise and allow for works to occur outside standard daytime hours where necessary, provided appropriate controls and mitigation measures are implemented.

To mitigate the impacts of noise on residents, tenants and businesses, we typically require the following measures (depending on the nature of the works):

• the use of suitable plant and equipment
• minimisation of unnecessary idling or impulsive noise
• staging of activities to limit high‑noise tasks where practicable
• active monitoring and response to complaints should issues arise
• even where works are lawfully permitted, Council continues to manage noise levels and operational practices to ensure impacts remain reasonable under the circumstances.

Example: An example of noise mitigation on night-time road re-sealing works is where we require contractors to carry out milling (removal of existing asphalt), which is the noisier element of the work, ceasing milling by 11pm, followed by resealing of the road with new asphalt, which is less noisy and which may continue throughout the night. This minimises the noise of night road works for residents whilst they are sleeping.

The City of Launceston and its contractors will manage levels of vibration in accordance with relevant Australian standards (applying to impacts on buildings and heritage) and EPA technical guidelines (applying to impacts on people).

Mitigation of vibration impacts may include:

• monitoring vibration levels during works where appropriate and updating the site management plan
• using quieter, lower vibration equipment and construction methods (e.g. Using the lowest suitable equipment size/power; boring piles instead of impact-driven piles)
• limiting higher vibration activities in duration and as far as possible to day-time hours
• carrying out building condition surveys of adjacent, potentially affected buildings prior to works, on projects where structural impacts are identified as a risk.

Where a construction site is assessed as having dust risks, mitigation measures will be planned and monitored, and will include relevant, industry-standard dust suppression methods and systems, which may include:

• water spraying
• chemical suppression
• soil stabilisation
• dust containment tents (on building sites)
• ·vehicle speed control (on road works sites)
• covering materials such as cement, sand or fine gravel
• site management (e.g. Site clearing; equipment cleaning)

During construction, temporary traffic and parking changes may be implemented in accordance with the Traffic Act 1925 (Tas), the Road Rules 2019 (Tas), the Tasmanian guide Traffic Control for Works on Roads, and relevant City of Launceston by‑laws. 

Where temporary traffic and parking changes are required, these will be subject to an approved Traffic Management Plan, which includes provisions for:

• safe vehicle movements and detours
• temporary suspension of parking where required
• maintained access for emergency services
• clearly signed, accessible, safe pedestrian pathways
• ongoing monitoring to respond to changing site conditions.

Where access to homes and businesses will be temporarily blocked due to construction works, the City of Launceston will engage with affected residents, tenants and businesses as early as possible and work together to agree on suitable access arrangements and timing of works to maintain safe and necessary access.