Revved up at gridlock in Noosa's Groundhog Day

Councillors debate transport strategy for Noosa

HELLISH: Beckmans Rd is a bottleneck at the best of times. Picture: Peter Gardiner

ONE veteran Noosa councillor is warning that nightmare traffic snarls which were once a problem in peak holidays are turning local bottlenecks into gridlocked Groundhog Day.

"We were always going to get overrun by the number of cars, etc, but it's becoming critical,” Cr Frank Pardon said.

"What used to be Easter and Christmas (congestion) now will become a daily event throughout the shire with regards to trying to get around by a car.”

Cr Pardon said the Transport Strategy was the "number one project we need to deliver” and he said council was now looking to put on a project manager to drive this strategy.

Cr Joe Jurisevic said it was "all well and good doing a transport strategy, but it's all about the implementation”.

He said the challenge will be to do something meaningful so that the same congestion stories are not being repeated in 20 years' time.

All councillors bar Cr Ingrid Jackson have voted to adopt an e-Noosa long-term transport proposal that looks towards a fleet of electric buses operating locally, as well as a possible duplication of the Garth Prowd bridge. The council will pursue funding opportunities from the state and commonwealth.

Cr Brian Stockwell said councillors had "opportunity to put out to the community a vision for transport which is far-reaching”.

Cr Jackson said the e-Noosa proposal and the latest transport and parking recommendations were not based on modelling on future Sunshine Coast population growth nor on forecast day-tripper and tourist numbers. She said the 10-year transport strategy would have electric buses "apparently” on the same bus routes as now.

"I'm not sure how that's meant to solve any traffic congestion,” she said.

"E-Noosa does not address public transport in the hinterland - no business case of costings have been provided for the e-Noosa proposal.”

She was also concerned council was not properly budgeting for the strategy with only about $2.4 million presently available in the transport levy fund.

"While I'm not against anything that has been put forward as ideas - I think ideas are always welcome - for the reasons I've listed I'm not able to support this motion.”

Mayor Tony Wellington said: "There's nothing in the e-Noosa design or concept that doesn't dovetail with our over-arching transport strategy.”

He said e-Noosa was separated from the rest of the strategy, which could be implemented through council funding because it would require high-level government funding. The mayor said the council had already consulted the community twice on this strategy.

The mayor said council had held discussions with TransLink/Sunbus about a Noosa specific electric bus service and these routes were not yet determined.

His understanding that all TransLink routes are being reviewed and they could all change.