Why Oceanway argument does not stack up

Arguments about the missing section of the Oceanway have resurfaced amid a mill of walkers and cyclists jostling with traffic on Hedges Ave. But one key point just does not stack up.

Sometimes sacrifices have to be made.

The question is: what do we value?

Millionaires row is turning into death row … and it’s time to stop the carnage.

Hedges Avenue at Mermaid Beach is being loved to death, but it’s the people who are paying the price – and residents have had enough.

Its crumbling, narrow footpath is studded with obstacles like power poles and potholes, packed with walkers and joggers jostling for space.

The overflow is regularly pushed into the bike lane, where speeding cyclists careen past kids on pushbikes, all while dodging the line-up of cars using the one-way street as a rat run to avoid the light rail construction on the Gold Coast Highway.

A photo posted to social media is the perfect illustration of this dangerous gridlock: the footpath is crowded with pedestrians looking after a cyclist propped up against a fence, an ambulance is parked in the bike lane, with a cyclist poised to veer past – directly into oncoming traffic.

Another photo shows people packed onto the pavement and spilling onto the street, it illustrates the power poles, the uneven pavement and the general jeopardy of this beachside path.

A photo posted on social media showing cyclists and an ambulance on Hedges Ave. Picture: Facebook

Another Hedges Ave photo posted on social media, showing pedestrians spilling onto the road. Picture: Facebook

Now, part of the light rail plan was that we were promised an extension of the Oceanway through Mermaid Beach.

While the unofficial diversion of cars down Hedges Ave might decrease once construction ceases, the foot and bike traffic will only continue to grow. This is now the only north-south path.

It’s been well documented that the Oceanway’s path through Mermaid Beach will not be an easy one, but now we’re being told it might not happen at all.

The Bulletin revealed in November that the Oceanway cannot be finished unless sections of the multimillion-dollar beachfront rollout were made “sacrificial”, meaning those bits were likely to be obliterated by storms and need rebuilding.

In response, Mayor Tom Tate ruled out building “sacrificial” sections of the Oceanway while he’s in power, declaring them to be a waste of time and money.

But the truth is that if we don’t do something about this beachfront strip, the only thing that will be sacrificed is people’s lives.

And what price do we place on that?

It’s happened before and, judging by these photos and posts, it’s just a matter of time until the next victim is claimed.

Locals using the Surfers South Oceanway. Picture: Glenn Hampson.

Division 12 councillor Nick Marshall, a vocal advocate for the Oceanway, said the ultimate goal for the city was to build a continuous defence line – a seawall – not just for the pathway, but to protect all of the Gold Coast.

So let’s do it. Because both the threat and the cost will only increase.

Cr Marshall also said while the city was pushing to have the Oceanway completed, public safety was at the forefront of council’s concern.

“We’re doing everything we can to try and look at how we can start that as soon as possible,” he said.

“We can’t really build something that could potentially wash away or worse, in a storm event – if it washes into somebody else’s property, takes out another house or kills somebody, because it’s been damaged and battered up against these houses.”

But I’ve spoken to architects and engineers who say it can be done, and done safely.

Maybe they’re wrong, but it’s 2025 … surely if you’re building with this hazardous contingency in mind, you can build it with safeguards baked in.

Besides, if we’re talking about an event that washes away the footpath, there is going to be damage to those homes regardless.

Further, we’re talking about possible damage from a possible event, compared to real damage and danger that is happening right now.

Cr Nick Marshall. Picture: Glenn Hampson.

While the Mayor and others have argued that there is a perfectly good Oceanway already in the beach itself, that argument just does not stack up.

Whether it’s a real alternative or not (I would argue that for the elderly and those with disabilities it’s absolutely not), the fact is that people prefer the footpath. They are voting with their feet and we cannot bury our heads in the sand and say the beach is an adequate transportation route.

Meanwhile Cr Marshall confirmed there were future plans to upgrade Hedges Ave, which included resurfacing work, but said they could not take place until after the completion of stage three of the light rail.

I just hope these plans include an absolute overhaul, including undergrounding the power poles, levelling the path and widening it as much as possible.

It’s not enough to stem the tide of traffic, but at least it gives our pedestrians and cyclists a fighting chance for survival.

It’s time to sacrifice money for the sake of people.