Grange Road intersection to be widened

A controversial road-widening scheme on a busy north Brisbane arterial intersection will go ahead as planned after a resident’s dispute was dismissed in court.

ROAD widening on a congested peak hour arterial road will begin in earnest after a resident’s dispute over the placement of a boundary fence was dismissed by an administrative tribunal.

The Brisbane City Council had delayed the $4.2 million project at the T-intersection of Grange Rd and Raymont Rd, Grange while the dispute over the boundary fence was being contested.

The Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal on Monday dismissed the resident’s complaint against the council on the grounds the tribunal only has jurisdiction to rule on disputes involving a dividing fence, not a boundary fence.

The resident claimed the council’s land resumption created an illegal setback of just three metres from the road to the house lot’s boundary.

Northbound traffic approaching the T-intersection which will have a dedicated left hand turn lane into Raymont Rd. Photo: Darren Cartwright

They claimed that was in breach of the Queensland building code which states there must be a minimum six metre setback for houses on blocks of 450sq m or more.

They even submitted two building tribunal decisions that sided with council that had enforced the six metre setbacks although the hearing never progressed to determine their worth.

Now that the QCAT dispute had been settled, a council spokesman said it was “full steam ahead” and the upgrade would improve road safety and reduce congestion.

Southbound traffic approaching the T-intersection which will soon be three lanes with one dedicated for right-hand turning vehicles into Raymont Rd. Pic: Darren Cartwright

The project had been in planning for three years and the first stage was the relocation of residential front fences.

“Current traffic volumes during morning and peak periods are exceeding the capacity of the intersection, leading to congestion and a number of serious traffic safety incidents,” the spokesman said.

“Council will continue to work with local residents to mitigate any impacts during construction, which is still on track to be completed by end of this year.”

The council had resumed up to 22sq m of land from more than 10 houses along Grange Rd to increase the number of southbound lanes from two to three at the T-intersection.

An artist's impression of the new boundary for houses on the eastern side of the T-intersection of Grange Rd, Raymont Rd, Grange where up to 22sq m of front yard has been resumed.

The upgrade also includes an exclusive left-hand turning lane for north bound traffic.

The resident, who asked not to be named, said it was disappointing that there was no legal avenue to contest a boundary fence.

Last night they started a mediation process through the Queensland Government Dispute Resolution Centre in the hope of finding out an acceptable outcome for both the council and themselves.