Eagleby residents seek answers as BMD takes over Allroads contracts

Engineering firm BMD Constructions has taken the road building reins in Logan after the Allroads collapse, amid concerns over Eagleby contracts and a $20 million highway upgrade blowout.

Tenders have been called for a $95 million upgrade to a section of the Mount Lindesay Highway near Jimboomba in Logan. Picture: TMR

A large construction giant has stepped into the void left by road building company Allroads after the company’s collapse last month.

BMD Constructions has been awarded Logan City Council contracts in and around Eagleby, where residents have been left with massive potholes, partial road closures and open drains for more than two years.

This month, Logan City Council appointed BMD Constructions to take over some of the Allroads contracts and complete open sections of work on the Eagleby master drainage upgrade.

The Allroads collapse left a trail of debt along with a number of incompleted council and state government projects across the state.

The stalled Eagleby road works were just one project that Allroads was overseeing before the Supreme Court ordered it into liquidation in March.

Administrators found there were 721 creditors owed $24.5 million with 145 staff owed $3.9m in wages, super and entitlements.

Eagleby residents are fed up with the road chaos in their neighbourhood streets and will hold a meeting to discuss the new BMD contract tonight. Pictures: Contributed

Aggrieved Eagleby residents have organised a community meeting tonight, May 14, to discuss the way forward after being left with massive potholes and closed roads for nearly two years under the former Allroads contract.

Eagleby residents want the Logan council to reveal details of the new BMD contracts after union concerns about the quality of materials BMD used in the construction of the $298 million Centenary Bridge.

In April, BMD refused to comply with an order by the government safety regulator WorkSafe Queensland to release third-party test results of the steel it was using.

Militant construction union the CFMEU had blockaded the site in peak hour one morning, claiming inferior Chinese steel was being used.

About 50 of its members were back on site today in another protest.

But the Transport and Main Roads Department labelled the claims “ridiculous’’ and said imported steel was being used only in temporary structures.

The bridge itself was being made with Australian steel which met stringent quality standards.

BMD was contacted for a comment about the Eagleby contract.

Construction crews will start completing the upgrade works on Monday, May 20 and will be preparing a new construction schedule.

Works will include completion of stormwater pits and pipes, kerb and channelling, pavement repairs, road resurfacing and driveway reinstatement.

This month, the state released details of one of the first major southeast road projects to go to tender since the demise of Allroads.

Drains in Eagleby where residents are fed up with the potholes and open drains. Pictures: Contributed

Calls were made for construction companies to bid for a $95 million upgrade to the embattled Mount Lindesay Highway, which links into many major Logan roads.

The highway continues to live up to its reputation as the Highway to Hell after designs for the upgrade announced this week revealed a massive $20 million cost blowout.

More than 15 people have died on the 116km stretch of road since 2001 with the long-awaited 1.5km section upgrade through Jimboomba, originally expected to cost $75 million in December.

That figure was ramped up to $95 million last week after a 26 per cent cost blowout and will be funded by both federal and state money.

The project is to widen the highway from two to four lanes from Johanna Street to South Street at Jimboomba and include a new southbound bridge over a disused rail corridor.

The road building project is one of the largest in the state’s southwest, with construction to widen the highway to four lanes expected to start this year and take 18 months.

A construction tender was released last year but then withdrawn pending the outcome of the Australian Government Infrastructure Investment Program Review.

A shared pedestrian and bike underpass will also be built along the disused rail corridor.

■ Town Hall Community Meeting: Eagleby Community Hall, Fryar Rd, Eagleby 6.30pm, Tuesday, May 14.

Originally published as Eagleby residents seek answers as BMD takes over Allroads contracts