‘Short term solution’: Rockhampton Regional Council responds to Ring Road plans

The council recently received a letter from the Department of Transport and Main Roads about various aspects of the project.

Rockhampton Ring Road - New Fitzroy River bridge. PIC: TMR

Rockhampton Regional Council will write to the Department of Transport and Main Roads about the Rockhampton Ring Road’s design, endorsing some elements and expressing frustration at others.

According to the agenda for its July 27 meeting, the council recently received a letter from the department’s Fitzroy district director Peter Trim in response to enquiries made in February after the council toured a ring road site.

The letter contained the department’s intentions regarding various aspects of the project.

First, the department decided not to include north-facing ramps at the ring road’s Alexandra Street intersection because of their cost and the longer travel time compared with Boundary Road, meaning cars will need to use Boundary Road to access the Bruce Highway or Alexandra Street.

Stuart Harvey, the council’s infrastructure planning coordinator, wrote in the agenda that he did not consider that a sustainable proposal.

“Council officers see the omission of the North facing ramps as a short term solution rather than a final solution for this interchange,” he said.

“The implications for council are that Boundary Road will have increased vehicle numbers along it and will be a mix of light vehicles with industrial vehicles from the Parkhurst industrial area.”

Mr Harvey said the council would request that the department not rule out the ramps entirely and instead consider them “when traffic volumes trigger these capacity improvements”.

They could be funded, he said, by cost savings made throughout the project.

Second, the department’s plans for the new Fitzroy River Bridge would accommodate cyclists, but not pedestrians, an exclusion for which it cited a perceived lack of demand for foot infrastructure.

Mr Harvey, on the other hand, said: “Council and the community have previously identified the crossing of the Fitzroy River as a major impediment to pedestrian connectivity in Rockhampton.

“Council officers would prefer to see an additional river crossing in Rockhampton and disagree with the decision not to include pedestrian infrastructure on the new Fitzroy River Bridge.”

Third, by Mr Harvey’s recommendation, the council also intends to raise concerns about increased traffic in Wandal, specifically at the intersections of North Street, Flynn Street, and Agnes Street, which he said “appears to be pushed to failure” as a result of additional traffic from the Ring Road travelling to the Rockhampton Hospital precinct”.

“Whilst the other intersections and road are operating at an acceptable standard of service, it is important to note that some roads will see significant increases in volumes during peak hours,” he said.

“This may create a perception of congestion or lack of safety amongst residents.”

The council will request that the Department of Transport and Main Roads commits to studying the effects of the ring road along Wandal Road, once complete.

It also supports a proposed signalised intersection on the ring road for access to the Dreamtime Cultural Centre.

Furthermore, the council’s agenda notes that the new Lion Creek Bridge, which will allow heavy vehicles to turn onto Canoona Road, will have a 2 per cent Annual Exceedance Probability flood rating, so in the event of a 1 per cent AEP flood, it will not be accessible.