Tin Can Bay Rd safety petition reaches 11.5k signatures

The Rainbow Beach businessman who has campaigned for change along the Wide Bay’s second most dangerous road said his petition, which reached 11,500 signatures, will serve as a ‘wake up call’ for a safety upgrade to be complete by 2024.

A petition with 11,500 signatures demanding significant upgrades to one of Gympie’s most dangerous roads will be tabled in Parliament next week.

Tin Can Bay Rd was named by the State Government in September as the second most dangerous road in the region after the Bruce Hwy, with more than 13 fatal crashes between 2001 and 2018.

It accounted for almost 10 per cent 136 fatal crashes in the region over those 18 years, which claimed 149 lives.

Six patients were treated at the scene of a two vehicle crash along the notorious stretch of road on September 27, the most recent reported incident which required emergency services. Photo: Scott Kovacevic

While the issue has been long standing problem, Rainbow Beach businessman Tony Stewart began campaigning for change six years ago.

He said the problem stemmed from impatient drivers overtaking slow vehicles such as cars towing caravans, and proposed pullover bays or overtaking lanes.

“I can’t blame caravaners for driving slowly on our road, because it’s not really a road where you can tow over 80 to 90km/h,” he said.

“People get impatient, and that causes quite a lot of accidents.”

In March, Mr Stewart and Gympie MP Tony Perrett launched a now closed petition addressed to Transport Minister Mark Bailey calling for better safety measures.

Rainbow Beach businessman Tony Stewart set his sights on a 10,000 signature goal when he spoke with the Gympie Times in August.

Mr Stewart said he hoped for 10,000 signatures, but smashed his goal with about 11,500 signatures before the petition was closed on September 30.

Mr Stewart said he attributed more than half that number to talking with locals and tourists along the Gympie region coast.

“I have met nearly 100 people who have nearly met serious accidents on the road,” he said.

“I’ve been here for 29 years, and I have seen the increased amount of traffic coming here.

“I know so many people here now won’t drive our road at night, because they feel it is not safe to do so.”

In July, it was announced Tin Can Bay Rd’s centre line would receive an overhaul in the way of a $700,000 safety upgrade to widen the gap between traffic.

Tin Can Bay Rd was named as the second most dangerous road in Gympie behind the Bruce Highway, accounting for almost 10 per cent of deaths in the region over an 18 year period. Photo: Google maps

The overhaul was to be completed by mid-September, with an additional $300,000 allocated by the Queensland Government Transport and Main Roads Department (TMR) over the next two financial years (2021-22 to 2023-24) to investigate additional overtaking opportunities on Tin Can Bay Rd.

But Mr Stewart said he was sure the petition would serve as a “wake up call” to speed up the upgrade.

TMR was contacted for comment, and are preparing a response.

The petition is set to be tabled in parliament on October 12.