Katter’s Cairns-to-Mareeba highway raises more questions than answers

Bob Katter’s hopes of holding the federal government to ransom have hit a pothole with the key item on the maverick crossbencher’s wishlist criticised by a key Far North economist and rival candidate. Vote in our poll.

Bob Katter has been campaigning for the Bridle Track development to be built for years. Picture: Scott Radford-Chisholm / The Australian

Bob Katter’s hopes of holding the federal government to ransom have hit a pothole with a key item on the maverick crossbencher’s election wishlist criticised by a Far North economist and rival candidate.

The Member for Kennedy is demanding more than $1bn to build a new highway along the Bridle Track, spanning 28km from the south of Cairns to Mareeba, featuring a floodproof tunnel and bridge.

Annette Swaine, LNP candidate for Kennedy, has questioned the value of Mr Katter’s proposal. Picture: Brendan Radke

Mr Katter has indicated that he is willing to work with either the current PM Anthony Albanese, or his challenger Peter Dutton, should the long-term MP form part of the crossbench after the federal election.

But a preliminary analysis has found that the Katter’s Australian Party’s Bridle Track proposal provided fewer economic benefits than several alternative routes that would improve transport between Cairns and the Tablelands.

Six options were reviewed by Cummings Economics with others considered more financially viable than Mr Katter’s choice, Cairns-based senior economist Bill Cummings said.

“As proposed, it would involve a tunnel and tunnels are more expensive,” Mr Cummings said.

“It also involves putting a bridge over Copperlode Dam and there’s a wider belt of rainforest to consider.

“The Bridle Track comes through fairly directly to Mareeba but it also has to cope with going up-and-down over a few mountainous areas.

“Our preliminary analysis indicates that the other routes are better.”

An alternative route from Cairns to the Tablelands would ease pressure on the 63km Kuranda Range Road. Picture: Brendan Radke

The historic Smith Track route which would turn off from the Western Arterial Road on the southern side of Kamerunga Bridge, cutting around 16km off commuters’ travel, deserved deeper investigation, he said.

“It’s the original track the miners came down on from Thornborough in the Hodgkinson Goldfields to establish Cairns,” Mr Cummings said.

“Just on travel time savings and vehicle operating savings, preliminary figures indicate that you’d save around $50m per year based on the current volumes of traffic with some growth.

“Over a 30-year project period that works out to about $1.5bn.”

The LNP’s candidate for Kennedy, Annette Swaine, said further analysis of alternative routes was required before committing to a development.

“A tunnel is an expensive option and one that, in my opinion, doesn’t make the most sense,” Ms Swaine said.

“In my discussions with councils and industry, there are a few alternative route options going around but no real plan to investigate one or the other.”

An alternative route between Cairns and the Atherton Tablelands would have several economic benefits, economist Bill Cummings says. Picture: Brendan Radke

The 63km Kuranda Range Road was crippling the Far North’s economy, Mr Cummings said.

“The current road is constricted to less than B-double-sized vehicles,” he said.

“B-doubles are your standard freight vehicle all over Australia and you can’t even bring a B-double down it.

“It is a substantial inefficiency for the freight industry, particularly a lot of the southward movements out of the region which are fruit and produce from Mareeba.”

The inability for B-double to easily commute from the coast to inland increased costs for businesses who rely on the route.

“Larger vehicles carry freight more cheaply,” Mr Cummings said.

“Things like fuel moving in, fertilisers, dump material and so forth, the more efficient heavy vehicles lead to savings.

“The constraint of not being able to simply link with a B-double freight up to Cairns (is an issue).”

An upgrade to the existing Kuranda Range Road would cost an estimated $1.4bn.

Further analysis would be required to reach more “definite conclusions” about the best possible route, Mr Cummings said.

Originally published as Katter’s Cairns-to-Mareeba highway raises more questions than answers