Opinion: Bruce Hwy still used as a political plaything

The federal government needs a totemic promise to win back regional Queensland, and there’s nothing that unites them better than the Bruce Highway, writes Hayden Johnson.

Why do political parties consistently dismiss regional Queenslanders who have for decades demanded a better Bruce Highway?

We don’t know the cause of Sunday’s tragic fatal crash, but we know it happened on a less-than-desirable stretch of road.

The federal government needs a totemic promise to win back regional Queensland, and there’s nothing that unites them better than the Bruce Highway.

This isn’t a recent problem of Labor’s making, but generational under-investment by politicians who turn their attention to the Bruce Highway only when they need a hi-vis election photo opportunity.

According to the Australian Automobile Association, they use the Bruce as a “political plaything”, while regional Queenslanders are left with no assurance when an upgrade is coming.

If duplicating the Bruce Highway is unfeasible, the federal and state governments should commit to a detailed and defined plan that would improve its rating.

Right now, 45.2 per cent of the Bruce Highway is rated just two stars out of five, while 44 per cent is rated three stars and just 10 per cent received four or five stars.

It’s not good enough.

About half of the Bruce Highway, about 850km, has been upgraded with wider centre lines.

There seems to be a lack of urgency in Canberra and Brisbane to fast-track the rollout of this simple yet effective infrastructure.

Why must Queenslanders gaze far over the horizon to find a long-term plan for the Bruce Highway?

On the eve of the June 11 budget, the state government trumpeted its plan to splash an extra $250m on the highway each year, but it won’t start for three more years.

According to the 15-year Bruce Highway plan, many safety upgrade projects between Gympie and Cairns aren’t slated to start until 2029 at the earliest.

Regional Queensland, through mining royalties and agriculture, has done the heavy economic lifting, it’s urgent that politicians in the city repaid them with a safer Bruce Highway.