Beef Corridor road upgrades pegged back to 2028, leaving farmers in lurch

Queensland’s regional mayors were promised crucial roads for beef and mining would finally be sealed, under a $400m package. Now they say they’ve been left in the lurch with a four-year delay.

Central Queensland mayors have reacted in shock to Labor’s decision to delay $400m of upgrades to the Beef Corridor Roads.

Banana Shire incumbent mayor Nev Ferrier said he was under the impression works on the arterial cattle and mining stretches were to begin in 2025.

“I’m certainly blindsided, I thought the deal was done,” Mr Ferrier said, adding he feared the pushback to 2027 and beyond would blowout infrastructure costs.

The $400m, which the LNP committed in 2022 to be spent over 10 years, was to be split in two with $300m to seal 457km of roads across seven local government areas and the remaining $100m to expand heavy vehicle corridors along the Burnett, Leichhardt and Dawson highways.

But in senate estimates this week it was revealed $50m had been moved to 2027-28, with a further $50m to 2028-29, $100m to 2029-30 and 2030-31 and the remaining $100.1m assigned to 2031-32.

Rocky ‘rattled’

Rockhampton Regional Council incumbent deputy mayor Neil Fisher said he was “rattled” and “very disappointed” to learn Labor put the upgrades on the backburner.

“It’s like the Rockhampton Ring Rd, we literally had to fight tooth and nail for that,” Mr Fisher said.

“Why do always have to fight like crazy just to get what the capital cities have thrown at them.”

Rockhampton Regional Council incumbent deputy mayor Neil Fisher says he was ‘rattled’ to learn Labor had delayed critical upgrades to Beef Corridor Roads.

Department of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development spokeswoman Maxine Ewens told the senate committee Labor would consult with the affected councils — particularly Barcaldine, Banana Shire, Rockhampton, Isaac, Woorabinda Aboriginal Shire, Gladstone, and Central Highlands – and then submit a project proposal report.

“They haven’t provided an indicative time frame on that,” Ms Ewens said before revealing she did not know what roads were affected.

“I’ll send you a map,” Senator Matt Canavan retorted, adding Labor would find it difficult to convince regional Queenslanders they were a priority.

‘Cheap politics’ or unreasonable delays?

This publication reached out to Main Roads departments and ministers at both state and federal levels to ask why there was a delay, whether it had anything to do with other major road projects — like the Inland Freight Route — and what consultation was had with Central Queensland councils.

Money promised to fix roads in the Beef Corridor is sitting unused, commitments pushed out to 2028. They were supposed to break ground next year. Picture: Harry Bruce

They were also asked to justify the delay considering coal royalties were generated from mines relying on the Beef Corridor Roads, and further how could they restore the faith of Central Queenslanders who now came to expect major delays to road projects.

Queensland Transport and Main Roads Minister Bart Mellish responded by saying that Labor did invest heavily in Central Queensland citing the $1.7bn Rockhampton Ring Rd.

Mr Mellish added the Queensland Transport and Roads Investment Program 2023-27 outlined $2.605bn for Central Queensland and was “estimated to support 2320 direct jobs over the next four years”.

Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development of Australia Catherine King has accused the coalition of playing “cheap politics” over its dig at the delay to Beef Corridor Roads upgrades. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Like Mr Mellish, federal Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Minister Katherine King also highlighted the Ring Rd, while alleging the coalition was playing “cheap politics”.

“The Queensland Government is consulting local councils on the delivery of this program of works and the Australian Government’s funding will flow once the projects are ready to proceed,” Ms King said.

Neither Mr Mellish or Ms King addressed questions about royalties, what caused the delay, or how Labor could assure Central Queenslanders their road projects mattered.

Concerns government bodies ‘just don’t try’

Central Highlands Mayor Kerry Hayes said the delays were “just wrong” and showed Labor’s lack of understanding on delivering infrastructure for regional Queensland.

Central Highlands Mayor Kerry Hayes says the government is not trying hard enough to realise infrastructure projects in regional Queensland.

“They’ll argue that a large amount of infrastructure in one region can’t be reasonably achieved,” Mr Hayes said.

“The thing is they don’t try.

“I would deduce they are probably substituting the urgency of the Beef Roads against the urgency of the Ring Rd.”

Mr Hayes said Central Queensland was home to the largest cattle herd in the world and pushing back upgrades put the industry at risk, adding this was another example of regional investments coming off second best to projects in urbanised spaces with larger voter bases.

Roads that were assigned to be sealed included Alpha Rd in Clermont, May Downs Rd, Kilcummin-Diamond Downs Rd, Alpha-Tambo Rd, Dawson Developmental Rd, Fitzroy Developmental Rd from Bauhinia to Duaringa and from Bauhinia to Taroom, Duaringa-Apis Creek Rd, and Glenroy Road Corridor.