Flood restaurant salvage plan to cause weeks of pain on busy road

Commuters using one of Brisbane’s busiest roads will have to put up with traffic snarls until a flood-hit riverfront restaurant is removed. The speed limit on Coronation Drive will be dropped until the restaurant can be lifted off a bikeway.

Commuters using one of Brisbane’s busiest roads, Coronation Drive, will have to put up with traffic snarls until a flood-hit riverfront restaurant is removed.

The speed limit on the Milton-Toowong road will drop from 60kmh to 40kmh near the former Drift restaurant, which was dumped by flood waters on the Bicentennial Bikeway.

Cyclists have been using Coronation Drive to get around the blockage on the bikeway, the busiest in Queensland with 5000 people and cycle users per day.

The speed limit drop will take effect from Monday morning even though Transport Minister Mark Bailey, a keen cyclist, could not say how long it would take for work to start, let alone be completed.

Drift owner Ken Allsop told media recently he wanted the State Government or Brisbane City Council to pay for it to be removed, so he could repair and refit the structure which he claimed was due to reopen in March — until the flood hit.

Mr Allsop did not return numerous calls for comment.

‼️DRIFT UPDATE‼️

We’ve received advice that the State Government may not be able to remove the old Drift restaurant from the Bicentennial Bikeway for another six weeks. pic.twitter.com/43iKZwhQ34

— Adrian Schrinner (@bne_lordmayor) March 22, 2022

But after mounting community anger, it emerged on Tuesday afternoon (March 22) that the State Government last week drafted a legal direction to the Queensland Reconstruction Authority (QRA) giving it the authority to take action.

It is estimated removing the restaurant, which will require very large cranes, could take weeks as it may need to be cut into pieces and transported downstream.

Deputy Premier Steven Miles said on Tuesday that he had directed the Queensland Reconstruction Authority (QRA) to use its powers under the QRA Act to stabilise and make safe the restaurant structure, after an independent engineering report found it posed a significant public safety risk and could collapse.

Drift restaurant is now high and dry on the Bicentennial Bikeway at Milton.

“The 200-tonne structure is currently preventing the community walking, bike riding and scooting safely on the bikeway,’’ he said.

“An independent engineering report highlighted serious safety issues and stated that ‘in its current state, the pontoon is considered to be at risk of immediate and sudden collapse’.’’

The QRA Act came into effect in 2011 to ensure Queensland and its communities recovered from the impacts of disaster events.

It includes powers to declare reconstruction areas and critical infrastructure projects, and undertake works where it is necessary to facilitate the protection, rebuilding and recovery of an affected community.

These powers have been exercised only once before when, after the 2011 floods, QRA was directed to undertake works to repair and restore the damaged Toowoomba water pipeline.

Mr Bailey strongly denied Council claims that work would not even begin until May.

Minister for Transport and Main Roads Mark Bailey. Picture: Tara Croser

Mr Bailey did not put a timeframe on when a salvage operation could begin, but said “it certainly won’t be six weeks before we start’’.

“We have a 200 tonne restaurant impaled on four river piles — it’s highly a dangerous and unstable situation,’’ he said.

“We have a duty to ensure the safety of the local community and to see essential public assets, like the bikeway and Brisbane River, restored, and hazards appropriately managed.

“But nobody is bigger on cycling infrastructure than me.’’

Council announced it would close a turning lane near the site on Coronation Drive from Monday, and reduce the speed limit in that section to 40kmh.

Council’s Public Transport Chair, Ryan Murphy, said Council had made the decision to drop the speed limit because of the likely delays in removing Drift.

Drift restaurant is now high and dry on the Bicentennial Bikeway at Milton.

“This is Brisbane’s busiest bikeway with one million trips alone by cyclists last year,” Cr Murphy said.

“Since Drift Restaurant has sat marooned on the Bicentennial Bikeway following the flood, we have been advising cyclists to dismount on a narrow section of footpath along Coronation Drive.

“However, while this would have been an adequate solution for a short period of time, it is not sustainable for the six weeks it is going to take for the State Government to start work.”

Under the plan, one of the westbound lanes of Coronation Drive between Lang Pde and Graham St will be closed to vehicle traffic and converted into a temporary two-way bike lane.

The right-hand turn lane from Coronation Drive into Lang Pde will be removed and converted to a through lane to maintain two lanes for vehicles.

Traffic along this section will be slowed to 40km/h and water-filled safety barriers put in place to separate vehicle and cycling traffic.

Council will undertake pavement works and line marking over the weekend with the temporary solution to be operating from this coming Monday morning.

“We acknowledge Coronation Drive is a very busy road and that this is going to inconvenience westbound motorists,” Cr Murphy said.

“Unfortunately this situation is going to take longer than first envisaged and safety must be our priority.