Coomera Connector divides LNP as major piece of Gold Coast infrastructure
The Coomera Connector is the biggest piece of Gold Coast infrastructure promised during this election period - but behind the scenes, it’s driving a wedge between members of a major political party.
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THE Coomera Connector is the biggest piece of Gold Coast infrastructure promised during the State poll. Behind the scenes, the highway is dividing the LNP.
Some believe it will cost the party two valuable seats.
LNP MP Sam O’Connor in Bonney, which includes new luxury homes built east of the Helensvale railway station, is on a 2.2 per cent margin. In neighbouring Theodore, Mark Boothman’s margin is 3.72 per cent.
An experienced LNP campaign strategist called your columnist about the Coomera Connector.
“This could really hurt Sam. The only other person I think who is in trouble at the moment is Mark Boothman because the road is mostly in his electorate,” the strategist said.
The concern about both of these hard working MPs surviving explains why the LNP’s plan for the Coomera Connector differs from Labor’s.
All seems smooth about the M2’s future after the federal government announced $750m for the first stage on the back of Labor’s $755m announced last month.
But here is the critical difference — the Palaszczuk government’s first stage includes a six-lane, 16.6km road from Carrara to the Coomera Marine Precinct.
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What residents think of the Coomera Connector
Is the Coomera Connector on pause?
Coomera Connector and the missing piece
The LNP has pledged a four-lane road from Helensvale to the marine precinct, and to build the smaller section in its first term of government.
The Opposition’s M2 starts at Brisbane Road which effectively means less impact on residents at The Surrounds near the Helensvale station and further south at Arundel Springs. They live in Bonney.
In January 2019 the Bulletin first revealed residents in those $1 billion developments next to the tight transport corridor between Parkwood and Helensvale would be impacted given much of it was taken up with the light rail extension built for the Commonwealth Games.
While many LNP members say supporting a six-lane road will not help Mr O’Connor and Mr Boothman at the poll, some query the economic logic of only building a four-lane highway.
“Why build four lanes when you can build six lanes for the same cost. Yes, you can build four lanes cheaply out there. But in two years time you have to go to six lanes and it will be dearer,” the source said.
Labor is focused on seats in the north, retaining and then building on Meaghan Scanlon’s win in Gaven last time round. Smart thinkers in the LNP acknowledge the strategy.
“If you go through Sam’s electorate out to Gaven, Coomera and Theodore, you’re in a world where you have to think you are vulnerable (politically). It’s nappy valley, you have tradies and high rentals, it used to be five acre lots out there,” the LNP source said.
Mr O’Connor knows hundreds of residents at Arundel and The Surrounds are not happy with the second M2. He questions Main Roads graphics showing ample walking paths.
But he is comforted by his strong representations in the Parliament to deliver the best outcomes in terms of noise barriers.
“While we do need this infrastructure, the biggest for the city, we can’t forget the people who live alongside it. They have to be at the front of the mind by government,” he said.
What is the best solution? Which party has the best plans?
A transport source suggests the $2.4 billion second M2 needs to be built its entire length between Nerang and Stapylton to take an estimated 60,000 vehicles off the M1.
“It’s all about length, not about the width. If you lose a kilometre, it loses its value,” the source said.
RESIDENTS CONCERNED ABOUT NOISE
RESIDENTS are most concerned about noise barriers as the State Government begins a second round of consultation on the proposed $2.4 billion Coomera Connector.
Helensvale-based councillor William Owen-Jones has updated residents on the project after receiving an email from the Transport Department.
Main Roads says the second round of consultation would focus on Stage 1 of the project between Coomera and Nerang.
“The purpose of this next round of consultation is to provide the community with more information about what the Coomera Connector will look like and the opportunity for the community to share ideas about the negotiable urban design-related aspects of the project,” Main Roads said.
Residents will be asked to provide input on the:
• Design of noise barriers
• Design of retaining walls
• Landscaping and planting in and around the project corridor
• Design of the shared path for walking and bike riding including items such as shade trees, viewing platforms, rest areas, seating and water fountains.
The consultation website features a 3D project visualisation tool that enables community members to explore 360 degree panoramas of what the Coomera Connector may look like between Coomera and Nerang.
The latest updates on planning for Stage 1 of the Coomera Connector can be accessed by going to the following link: www.yoursay-projects.tmr.qld.gov.au/coomeraconnector. The consultation is open until 11 October 2020.”
Residents on Cr Owen-Jones’ Facebook page have urged others to make submissions about noise barriers.
A resident wrote: “This is within 15-20m of some houses in Helensvale. With COVID-19 and our looming $100 billion debt, do we really need a central road between Nerang and Coomera Waters?”
Cr Owen-Jones called on both Labor and the LNP to provide a commitment to residents on noise barriers ahead of the state election in October.
“The sound barriers, the type of road surface, they’re all the things that residents expect a commitment from both sides in parliament to get right,” Cr Owen-Jones told the Bulletin.
“The very last thing that the state government needs to do is value engineer noise attenuation.”
The first results from community consultation in November and December last year reveal strong support for the project. The independent survey, commissioned by the State Government, found respondents wanted the Coomera Connector built to relieve pressure on the M1.
But Queensland Greens Gold Coast member and Coomera resident Tom Andraszek in a petition to state parliament has called for the Coomera Connector project to be cancelled.
Mr Andraszek in his petition said the six-lane highway would impact on the “quality of life, health and wealth” of tens of thousands of residents. He said the Government should cancel the Coomera Connector and focus on improving public transport.
He obtained signatures from 657 residents for his petition last September.
Originally published as Coomera Connector divides LNP as major piece of Gold Coast infrastructure