News
18 February, 2026
Upgrades to Wombeyan Caves Road - however only in small sections
Upgrades are being carried out to Wombeyan Caves Rd, however only in seven small sections of between 50 metres and 150 metres, says Wingecarribee Shire Council.
Upgrades are being carried out to Wombeyan Caves Rd, however only in seven small sections of between 50 metres and 150 metres, says Wingecarribee Shire Council.
At a cost of $3.7 million, the work will be carried out by Hunter Valley-based independent contractors Ground Stabilisation Systems Pty. Ltd (GSS), with the work taking approximately 7 months with an estimated completion date of September 30 this year.
Council also explained that the repairs to the road are being carried out using funding from the Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA), a cost-sharing agreement between the Federal and State governments to support recovery from natural disasters.
“Wombeyan Caves Road is a 61.5 km regional road, with approximately 31 km unsealed, is only around 4 metres wide, and located on unstable embankments without barriers,” the Wingecarribee Shire Council statement said.
“The road traverses complex and challenging terrain, which makes repairs and maintenance more difficult than standard local roads.
“Funding can only be used for identified and approved disaster damage, and works must be specific to the approved claim; it cannot be used for general upgrades or widening.
“Works will be undertaken at seven discrete locations along Wombeyan Caves Road, extending from the commencement of the unsealed (dirt) section through to Goodmans Ford.”
Four tender submissions were received to carry out the work, with GSS chosen as the best in Council’s December 2025 meeting agenda.
“The company has demonstrated a high level of experience and capability in the field,” the agenda stated.
“The submission offers a comprehensive and well-structured program, represents good value for money, and is within the approved grant funding.”
The NSW Government also provided $300,000 to ‘investigate the road’s challenging unsealed terrain.’
“Outside of these seven identified locations, no other construction activities will be undertaken on Wombeyan Caves Road,” Council also said in the statement on their website.
However, Councillor Rachel Russell also sought answers to work that was due to be carried out on the road in January, and was given the following response:
“Recent maintenance carried out includes:
Potholes on the sealed section repaired in early January;
A full road inspection was carried out on 6 January 2025 from Mittagong through to Wombeyan Caves;
The section from the tunnel (at Bullio) to Pheasant Gully Rd is generally in good condition, with some potholes and corrugations on corners consistent with the unsealed road network. Signage reminding drivers to ‘drive to conditions’ are in place, and contractors will address these issues when works begin in February.”
Emergency work was also carried out west of Goodmans Ford Rd to Langs Rd (a distance of some 12 or so kilometres), which included:
Cutting a drain along one side of the road;
Removing loose rocks and fallen trees; and
Interim surface works to improve driveability.
According to Live Traffic NSW, this section of road is set to be closed until May 17, with traffic being diverted via Goulburn and Taralga.
Council also explained that other recent works carried out included the section from Wombeyan Caves to Langs Rd (approximately 2-3kms) that was also graded in December 2025.
The Southern Wire also understands that Cr Russell is putting forward a Notice of Motion at this afternoon’s meeting regarding a revised Resourcing Strategy 2025/26 and welcomes the upgrades to Council’s communications to the community regarding the road and other issues.
“I welcome the improvement in Council’s communications and updates for the community,” she said.
“For future works I would like to see a Business Case on whether it would support improved service levels and value for ratepayers overall if we brought our road maintenance back ‘in-house’.
“My notice of motion today asks that we align our Resourcing Strategy with our Risk Policy regarding evaluating best value in models of service delivery across Council services. Let’s find out.”
The roadwork on Wombeyan Caves Road is due to start tomorrow (Thursday February 19).
For more information on the upgrades to Wombeyan Caves Rd, visit the link at https://tinyurl.com/2s3j2sxy.
Read More: Mittagong, Southern Highlands, Taralga