RACQ survey reveals Qld’s top 10 most hated roads

Drivers are up to five times as likely to crash on parts of the Bruce Highway than those in remote areas of NSW and Victoria, new figures show.

Gridlock on the Bruce Highway between Gympie and Maryborough

Drivers travelling to rural North Queensland are up to five times as likely to crash on the Bruce Highway than those driving to remote areas of New South Wales and Victoria.

Sections of the Bruce Highway have an average-per-kilometre-travelled fatal or serious injury crash rate three times that of rural sections along the Pacific Highway and five times as high as the Hume Highway.

But some stretches, including Childers to Gin Gin, have a serious crash rate 10 times as high as those of the NSW and Victorian federal highways.

The new data comes as the LNP makes an election pledge to fix a stretch of the highway one of the worst in Australia.

The Bruce Highway remains the most despised road in Queensland, according to RACQ’s 2024 Unroadworthy Roads Survey, which allows Queenslanders to vote and share their concerns.

Head of public policy Michael Kane said the survey was further proof urgent upgrades were needed along the deadly 1700km stretch, with undivided sections between Gympie to Childers, Gladstone to Proserpine and Townsville to Cairns receiving the majority of complaints.

It came as the LNP revealed it planned to add a roundabout to a deadly Bruce Highway intersection at Maryborough.

Opposition Leader David Crisafulli visited the safe Labor seat of Maryborough on Wednesday to pledge an upgrade to the Walker St intersection.

“Our priority is to make sure the goat track that is the Bruce Highway becomes a thing of the past,” he said.

Mr Crisafulli said he would advocate for an 80-20 federal-state funding split to fix the highway, and the LNP would allocate $20m to the project and start progressing planning works and detailed design if it was elected on October 26.

The state government has argued it is progressing upgrades up and down the highway, and released a strategy to improve rest stops, lane widening and paving.

QLD’S 10 MOST HATED

1. Bruce Highway

2. Kennedy Highway

3. Mount Mee Rd

4. Brisbane Valley Highway

5. New England Highway

6. Warrego Highway

7. Yakapari Seaforth Road in Mackay

8. D’Aguilar Highway

9. Peak Downs Highway

10. Cunningham Highway