Before and after: Chermside tunnel plan revealed

A traffic tunnel could be built under one of Brisbane’s busiest roads to transform a gridlocked precinct into a major business and residential hub with a village atmosphere. BEFORE AND AFTER INTERACTIVE

A VEHICLE tunnel could be built under Brisbane’s Gympie Rd to transform Chermside into a major suburban business and residential hub with a village atmosphere, a new report says.

The concept has been unveiled by urban design think-tank Suburban Alliance, which says the vision would attract billions of dollars of development and create thousands of jobs.

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Director Ross Elliott says major urban renewal and infrastructure investment in the area is decades overdue, with much of the commercial strip still looking like it did in the 1970s.

The vision report presents two possibilities.

In the first, a 1.6km tunnel would be constructed under Gympie Rd between the Rode Rd and Murphy Rd.

The other suggests a 9km tunnel from Telegraph Rd and Stafford Rd to connect with the existing Airportlink, Clem7 and Legacy Way tunnel systems.

That would allow that section of Gympie Rd to be narrowed to a tree-lined boulevard for local traffic and possibly an expansion of the Brisbane Metro public transport system due to start in 2023.

Gympie Rd currently carries 66,000 vehicles a day, not far short of the 75,000 on the Gateway Motorway, and is one of the state’s worst accident hot spots.

The idea is modelled on Nundah where $55 million spent on a bypass tunnel has resulted in more than $800 million of private investment in apartments, retail, food and commercial buildings.

“Nundah went from a failing business and community village to a thriving hub. The same could happen with Chermside, but on a much larger scale,” the report says.

The group is now urging the State Government and Brisbane City Council to formally investigate the cost and potential economic boost.

Concept map for Chermside tunnel