MotoGP track: DIT eyes moving olive groves, 377 trees to go

Why it matters

The olive groves were previously flagged to be destroyed for the new motorcycle track. Relocation is so far only a possibility under discussion, not a commitment. The hearing was part of the committee’s examination of the Adelaide Circuit Redevelopment Project. We earlier covered the federal environment ruling on the project. For more from South Australia, see our Adelaide market page and the report on the Richmond Oval rebuild, another state-backed project announced the same day.

InDaily reported that more than 100 “Stop the Chop” protesters, including former Adelaide MP Rachel Sanderson, gathered outside Parliament before the hearing. Some briefly heckled Whelan after he said the project contingency sits within the $96 million allocation but is commercial in confidence.

The numbers

According to DIT, as reported by InDaily, the redevelopment requires removal of 377 trees, of which 42 are significant. A further 22 trees need detailed below-ground investigation to confirm whether they can be kept. That work will be done after the bp Adelaide Grand Final and will involve vacuum truck investigation around the roots.

Asked about the $217 million economic benefit figure for the event, Whelan said it was based on advice from MotoGP, drawn from averages across the championship of new revenue. He said the government chose a more conservative figure than that. On what Cabinet was told about costs in February, he said the cost was not completely known then because detailed designs were still to be completed, but an estimate was given.

What’s next

Whelan said works would run between December 2026 and mid-2027, with an exclusion period from 19 February to 21 March next year to limit the impact on the Adelaide Fringe.

InDaily adds that the state government has since announced the new track would cost $96 million, and that it is enlisting a contractor to provide an economic benefit report on the Adelaide Grand Final and the MotoGP.

The hearing was chaired by Labor Waite MP Catherine Hutchesson. Whelan fronted it alongside the Department of the Premier and Cabinet’s chief operating officer Wayne Hunter, DIT MotoGP project director Megan Timson, DIT environment manager Lexi Schwarz, DIT deputy chief executive Andrew Excell and South Australian Motor Sport Board chief executive Mark Warren.

On the olive groves, DIT still has to settle the proposal, numbers and relocation sites with the City of Adelaide, then take it back to government for discussion and decision. The root investigations on the 22 trees will follow the Grand Final.

Source: InDaily, 9 November 2026.