Bruce Highway Qld: Politicians recruited for campaign
The authors of a damning report that exposed significant safety failures on the Bruce Highway have begun discussions with state and federal politicians.
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The authors of a damning report that exposed significant safety failures on the Bruce Highway have begun discussions with state and federal politicians to share their findings and campaign for improvements to the deadly roadway.
Northern Bruce Action Group members Colin Dwyer and Tracy Cheffins drove more 1600km along the highway in July, compiling 250 pieces of data, finding many areas failed basic safety checks.
On Monday, they met with Opposition transport spokesman Steve Minnikin and state MP Dale Last.
Further meetings have been arranged with Queensland Transport Minister Bart Mellish, Senator Pauline Hanson, and MP Bob Katter, and they have extended an invitation to federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King.
“We want to see reconsideration of funding for the Bruce Highway, because it simply won’t fix it with a 50/50 model,” Mr Dwyer said.
“The 80/20 model was rescinded just recently by Catherine King, and we would very much like to meet her to show the photos and the information that we’ve obtained from this survey.”
The Courier-Mail’s Help Our Highway campaign, which launched in April, revealed almost half the Bruce Highway failed basic safety ratings and just 10 per cent was assessed as extremely safe, with stretches in regional Queensland emerging as the worst danger zones.
Mr Dwyer and Ms Cheffins have been surveying comparative safety standards on the highway for eight years and advocating for safer standards as part of the Northern Bruce Action Group.
RACQ traffic and safety engineering manager Greg Miszkowycz backed their study.
“The findings from this report are further proof that the Bruce Highway isn’t up to scratch – plagued by surface defects, narrow bridges and lanes and lacking overtaking lanes,” he said.
“We’re calling for all two-star rated sections of the Bruce Highway to be upgraded by widening narrow sections and bridges, installing more overtaking lanes and safety barriers, and progressively duplicating the road to dual carriageway.”
Earlier this month an RACQ analysis of AusRAP crash data showed motorists using Queensland’s major highway are five times more likely to be injured or killed in a crash than those driving on the major carriageway that links Sydney and Melbourne.
Mr Minnikin said the LNP was listening and consulting with Queenslanders while sections of the Bruce Highway were in disrepair.
Minister for Transport and Main Roads, Bart Mellish said he looked forward to sharing the work the government has done.
“The Bruce Highway is the backbone of Queensland. That’s why it’s so critical that the Australian Government returns funding to the historical 80/20 arrangement,” he said.
“In June this year, the Miles Labor Government released a 15-year vision and three five-year rolling Action Plans for the Bruce Highway.”
Ms King said the government would continue to work with the Queensland Government to identify, plan and deliver priority upgrades to the Bruce Highway.
“We are making significant, necessary and overdue investments in the Bruce Highway, with over $10 billion committed to make it safer,” she said.
“We invested an additional $467 million in the Bruce in this year’s Budget, including an extra $154 million for the Bruce Highway North corridor.”
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