Fast forward two years, a lot of stress and numerous emails to and fro, the job of installing soundproof windows is yet to be finished.

"Why should you have to live with your windows boarded up?" said Mr North.

The RFS volunteer said he and his wife were easygoing people who had lived on their property for over 30 years. The property lies on the site of Meroo Meadow public school which was established circa 1867 and closed in 1971.

Mr North said he was amicable and cooperative with TfNSW engineers at the beginning of the highway construction at the front of their house. He said he allowed a shipping container to be placed on their property temporarily and he even let tradespeople use their toilet.

But, as the height of the highway grew, their anger over privacy infringement, vehicle noise and obtrusive headlights going into their bedrooms, grew with it.

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Before the upgrades began, Mr North said you could only see the roofs of the northbound cars. Today, the highway out the front is 1.8 metres higher than the original road and 1.2 metres higher than what was planned, a fact which caused one of the engineers to "[express] surprise", according to an email sent to Mr North from TfNSW.

Mr North said the raised highway has meant headlights have been shining directly into their bedroom which has not only affected their night's sleep, it has been a nightly reminder of their stressful feud with TfNSW.

"I'm not used to this sort of stuff. I rely on the honesty of people," he said.

"But I don't roll over either."

A new contractor was hired three months ago by RCA acoustics, the business contracted by TfNSW to do noise abatement. Mr North said the new contractor had made headway on installing the double glazed windows to comply with heritage site protocols.

But, it seems the couple's battle with TfNSW is far from over.

Mr North believes double glazed windows would do little to block the sound and light that has been entering their home.

He wants TfNSW to build a wall along the front of his property high enough and dense enough to block noise and light from going directly into their house.

"All we want is to get back to the status quo, as it was before," he said.

A spokesperson for TfNSW said "noise walls are considered as a noise abatement measure where four or more properties in close proximity to each are affected by noise and are eligible for noise mitigation under the NSW Road Noise Policy and Roads and Maritime Noise Mitigation Guidelines."

However, Mr North pointed to 80 Princes Highway/Omega Lane in Rose Valley as an exception to the rule.

Like his house, it lies alongside the Princes highway and has fewer than four immediate neighbours. But, unlike his house, it was once owned by TfNSW, and during that time, it had a wall built between the house and the road to block sound and light.

The spokesperson for TfNSW said "the wall installed at Omega Lane as part of the Gerringong upgrade is a headlight screen. At this location, southbound vehicles are descending a steep hill with headlights angled down directly into properties on Omega Lane. This is not a noise wall and has not been installed as noise mitigation or a privacy measure.

"It is important that Transport for NSW remains consistent in the application of noise mitigation measures in line with the NSW Road Noise Policy. This policy provides clear definition on when noise mitigation should apply and what measures are required.

"Transport's previous ownership did not have any bearing on the requirement to install the wall at the time."

However, Mr North believed the wall was built as a ploy to increase the value of the house for the benefit of TfNSW. He also said headlights would only effect 80 Princes Hwy/Omega lane, if at all, because their neighbour was at the bottom of the hill and not in the path of highway light.

TfNSW has refused the wall at Mr North's place, citing an acoustic test that was done at Meroo Union Church on Boxsells Lane which is a few properties over. Mr North said the test was inadequate because that property has trees around it and is further away from the highway.

The spokesperson for TfNSW said "noise modelling was completed prior to the construction of the Berry to Bomaderry bypass and identified properties eligible for noise mitigation measures.

"All eligible property owners who were offered noise mitigation signed an agreement to acknowledge they were satisfied with the proposal before work started."

However, Mr North said he signed the agreement with the proviso that he would not relinquish his right to pursue a noise/light/visual wall which can be seen on the back of the document.

TfNSW has also refused to build a wall for Mr North's property with the purpose of blocking light because their headlight illumination range report showed high beam light from modern cars travelling south should stop 100 metres shy of their house.

The TfNSW spokesperson said "Austroads Guide to Road Design states the maximum headlight illumination distance for modern vehicles is 150 metres, at which point the intensity of light diffuses. This guide has been used to consistently apply eligibility for headlight screens across the Berry to Bomaderry Princes Highway upgrade.

"The project considered the new road height and surrounding land topography in its assessments for headlight glare and road noise impacts."

TfNSW's definition of the "effective range" of light is the distance at which a light, when lighted, will illuminate and render easily discernible, under normal atmospheric conditions, between sunset and sunrise, any person dressed in dark clothing, or any substantial dark object, in front of the vehicle to which the light is affixed.

Mr North said the report and the definition of effective range was "ridiculous" because he believed it was designed around the perspective of motorists and the effect that light would have on cars travelling on the other side of the road.

As far as he knows, light does not stop after 150 metres from its source, it travels indefinitely or at least far enough to make it into his bedroom.

Mr North's communication channels with TfNSW about a separate but related issue regarding a safety guardrail placement, have broken down. Any correspondences about the matter will be "read, filed and not responded to", according to a recent email he received from TfNSW.

Now, he thinks the TfNSW engineers are "kleptocratic cowboys".

"They treat you with contempt," he said.

The new safety guardrail that was installed along the highway extends into his driveway, and according to Mr North, it has a very tight radius which is tighter than his neighbour's.

However TfNSW said in an email to Mr North "[it] has been checked and measured and is fully compliant (and within tolerances) with the approved system".

The spokesperson for TfNSW said "the guardrail was installed with an average 12m radii which has been quality assured. The design and installation is based on the final road alignment where a three metre shoulder will provide adequate deceleration and turning space."

So Mr North enlisted the help of David, an 80-year-old drone enthusiast who came and took aerial shots of the guardrail in question. David is Mr North's teacher from the Silver Fox computer class for seniors in Bomaderry.

Mr North said the aerial photography showed the guardrail was not within the 12 metre radius guideline and the radius measurements did not average to a smooth and safe bend.

Mr North said his main concern was the first section of the guardrail from the southern approach which has a radius measurement of 7.3 metres; an error of nearly 40 per cent.

"That's like if I owed a person $1000 and I only gave them $600. These people are supposed to be engineers," he said.

Mr North said the error in measurement would cause vehicles approaching the driveway from the south to need to slow down to a dangerous extent, with risk of being rear ended, in order to make the turn.

And he said it would only get worse when the speed limit rises from 80 to 100 at the completion of the project in 2022.

"TfNSW picked up their bat and ball and have gone home," he said.