Road upgrade to new Carbrook boat ramp hailed a deathtrap
The bitumen has hardly dried but already residents of a Brisbane southside suburb are complaining that a multimillion-dollar road upgrade to the state’s newest boat ramp has created a deathtrap.
Logan
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A $2 million road upgrade to the state’s newest boat ramp, has been hailed a deathtrap.
NO PLAN TO WIDEN ROAD NEAR PLANNED 4000-HOUSE ESTATE
Residents who live near Riedel Rd at Carbrook say road works have created a sharp hairpin bend which is difficult to navigate especially for large vehicles towing a boat trailer.
Resident Ken Thomas said there was a design fault in the turning lane from Beenleigh-Redland Bay Rd into Riedel Rd.
“The road works have made this a deathtrap,” he said.
“The left turn into Riedel Rd is so sharp that it is difficult for a four-wheel drive towing a boat to navigate without crossing the road’s centre lines.
“There is hump in the middle of the road making it even more difficult so it’s lucky people don’t yet know the boat ramp is open as we predict there will be more problems and possibly even a fatality if the switchback turn is not fixed.”
Pensar Infrastructure was contracted by the state government to build the $2.1 million turning lane, which was part of an overall upgrade of the busy Beenleigh-Redland Bay Rd.
The works were completed before the state opened the $1.5 million boat ramp and floating walkway on the Logan River which is at the end of the road.
Concerned residents met last week after a near-death accident near the corner on June 9, highlighted the hazards at the turn-off.
Police said a man in a truck had experienced a medical episode near the turn-off and police and an ambulance were called.
Since then, residents have taken their complaint to both state and council representatives, including Transport Minister Mark Bailey.
State MP for the area Melissa McMahon said she had secured an agreement from the Transport Department that it would conduct an urgent safety review.
She said the road upgrade was in anticipation of an increase in boat and trailer activity and the review would determine if any further measures were required.
It was not known when Transport Department officials would visit the site.
“I have passed on residents’ concerns and have spoken to the local Logan City councillor (Miriam Stemp) about it as well,” Ms McMahon said.
Details of the road problem were passed on to the Transport Department which was expected to undertake an evaluation period before working out the best way for residents to provide feedback direct to the department.
The turning lane on Beenleigh-Redland Bay Rd, is less than 5km from the site of the proposed Shoreline housing estate for 10,000 people which Lendlease has bought in neighbouring Redland.
Beenleigh-Redland Bay Rd, which becomes Cleveland-Redland Bay Rd is the major road link between Logan and Redland and is predominantly single-lane each way.
The state did not give details of any other upgrades or the schedule for widening the busy road.
Riedel Rd was once the address for the ill-fated proposed Lakes Resort, which was endorsed by former Logan City councillors Luke Smith and Russell Lutton but never came to fruition.
It is still the home for property developer and owner of the proposed resort Chinese-Australian Liansheng Yue.
There have been 143 accidents recorded on Beenleigh-Redland Bay Road in Cornubia and Carbrook since 2001 with three people killed, and 42 people hospitalised from their injuries.