Gympie Bypass Community Open Day line-up announced

Visitors will be able stroll, walk, jog or run a 5km loop on a section of the new Bruce Highway between the Flood Road interchange and the 250m long, eight-story high Six Mile Creek bridge. Access to the event will be by shuttle buses only, which will run from two locations.

An aerial shot of the Flood Road interchange of the Gympie Bypass.

The Department of Transport and Main Roads has unveiled the line-up of entertainment for the Gympie Bypass Community Open Day on August 17.

The Community Open Day will be held on Saturday, August 17, 2024 11am-4pm to celebrate the Bruce Highway Upgrade – Cooroy to Curra, Section D (Gympie Bypass) project.

Event attendees will receive a sneak peak of the $1.162 billion Gympie Bypass before it opens to the public later this year.

Visitors will be able stroll, walk, jog or run a 5km loop on a section of the new highway between the Flood Road interchange and the 250m long, eight-story high Six Mile Creek bridge (this is an informal, untimed ‘choose your own adventure’ type activity).

There will also be roving entertainment, performances by finalists from the Gympie Music Muster 2024 talent search, informative road safety and project displays, a vintage car and motorbike display, free face painting, and a mix of market-style stalls with food and beverages for purchase.

An aerial shot of the Flood Road interchange of the Gympie Bypass.

Attendees are encouraged to be part of a historic moment at the event, when a drone photographs the crowd spelling out the word ‘GYMPIE’ on the new highway.

Access to the event will be by shuttle buses only, which will run from two locations– 139 Noosa Road in Mothar Mountain, and along Flood Road in East Deep Creek via East Deep Creek Road.

The community will experience a short tour of the project while travelling on the shuttle bus to the event site.

The $1.162 billion Gympie Bypass is jointly funded by the Australian and Queensland governments in an 80:20 funding split.

The project has involved constructing a new 26km, four-lane divided highway between the existing Bruce Highway interchange at Woondum, just south of Gympie, and Curra, with works nearing completion.

TMR regional director Southern Queensland Bill Lansbury said it would be a chance for locals to get up close to a project that will transform the region.

“The project has involved building 42 bridges at 23 locations, moving more than 6 million cubic metres of earth, and laying over 142 kilometres of pavement and 610,000 tonnes of asphalt,” he said.

“This is a major milestone for the region and Gympie locals, and it is fitting that the community is part of the final leg of this journey.

“We are on the home stretch now, with the project still on track to be opened to traffic later this year.’