Townsville City Council park safety hooning prevention trial kicks off

Anti-hooning boulders will be installed at parks across the city as part of a safety trial after a series of close-call incidents.

ANTI-hooning measures will roll out at parks and open spaces across the city as part of a Townsville City Council trial.

Installation of a basalt boulder barrier around the perimeter of Heatley Park has begun with the aim to deter hooning and vandalism.

The trial follows a series of high-profile incidents involving cars hooning at parks including a harrowing incident in February where a stolen car sent a pack of children running as the car drove at a child and hooned at the Burt St soccer fields in Aitkenvale.

The council initially began planning for the trial after a number of sporting club grounds were repeatedly targeted.

Mayor Jenny Hill said the measure was necessary to reduce damage at parks and to reduce the risk of people being injured.

“There have been too many instances of hooning behaviour at public parks and sporting fields,” she said.

“It is a senseless crime and leaves residents and sporting associations frustrated about being unable to use their grounds and leaving them out of pocket to repair the damage.

Major Jenny Hill at the Townsville City Council. Picture: Evan Morgan

“This hooning behaviour is illegal, and if something is not done ratepayers and sporting groups will continue to carry the financial burden of repairing these spaces.”

Infrastructure Services Committee chairman Kurt Rehbein said the new measures would be trialled at several highly frequented parks including Charles Moroney Park at Kelso and Western Lions Park at Heatley.

“Some of these boulders weight as much as a car and are going to be very hard for hoons to move or drive over,” he said.

“If the trial is successful, then we will consider the use of rocks as an alternative to bollards and fences going forward.”

Originally published as Townsville City Council park safety hooning prevention trial kicks off