Highfields bikeway: Questions raised over lack of funding for construction of stage 2

A $12.2 million bikeway at Highfields was completed last year, but active Highfields residents are asking when they will be able to ride and run into Toowoomba. Here's what we know. 

Highfields resident and owner of MET Phys Sarah Mengel wants to see funding for construction of stage 2 of Highfields bikeway.

An unfinished bikeway and a path to nowhere in Highfields is failing to encourage people to take up cycling, according to a Highfields resident and business owner.

Exercise physiologist and owner and founder of Highfields business MET Phys Sarah Mengel said while she rode along the Highfields Bikeway, the fact that it didn’t go anywhere was a major concern.

Construction of the $12.2 million first stage of the bikeway was completed in December last year, and while the design phase of stage 2 is expected to be finished by October the Department of Transport and Main Roads confirmed there was no funding allocated to build it.

“The cycleway is a really great way to be active, they aren’t that many dedicated cycleways in the region, but it doesn’t go anywhere,” Ms Mengel said.

“People love using it but the use of it is quite limited compared to what it could be. Stage 1 has allowed people to be more active and people do use the cycleway but I don’t think to the extent to which it could be used by the larger community if the cycleway did connect to Toowoomba.

“People could use their bike or walk to go somewhere to ride to work rather than just ride to Toowoomba Christian College and back.”

Highfields resident and owner of MET Phys Sarah Mengel wants to see funding for construction of stage 2 of Highfields bikeway.

With Toowoomba one of Queensland’s most overweight cities, Ms Mengel said a completed bikeway could help address our bulging waistlines.

“With people that come to our clinic one of their biggest fears they have around being active is whether it’s safe, and if there aren’t safe places to be active it can be a huge barrier.

“A criticism cyclists get from motorists is that cyclists need to get off the road, but if you want to use the cycleway to get to Toowoomba you have to try and cross four lanes of highway traffic.

“The highway can be quite busy and dangerous, and with the cycleway not actually going anywhere cyclists still have to ride on the highway if they want to get to the city.”

Public submissions have closed for stage 2 of the Highfields cycleway project, and a TMR spokeswoman said design of the bikeway is expected to be done by October, but future funding for construction was still unconfirmed.

“New infrastructure projects of this size are often funded in three separate phases – planning, design and construction – to ensure there is appropriate scrutiny and assessment before further funding is allocated,” the TMR spokeswoman said.

A map of the three-stage Highfields bikeway.

Stage 1 of the bikeway was completed in December 2020, and installed a 3m wide, two lane path from Mitchell Road to Toowoomba Christian College and a connection from McShane Drive, Mt Kynoch, to Dwyer Street, Harlaxton.

The three-stage project is expected to cost $13.08 million.