2nd July 2009

By Kerryn Manifold


Early works for upgrades to the notorious Cooroy to Curra section of the Bruce Highway started on Monday, June 29 and it appears they could not have started soon enough.

Documents tabled in Queensland parliament in June by main roads minister Craig Wallace show the 64km stretch of the highway, familiar to emergency service workers throughout the region, has been the scene of 56 deaths in nine years.

As well as the loss of life, 295 people have been hospitalised with injuries following 840 crashes between 2000 and 2008.

The confronting numbers were revealed when Mr Wallace responded to a question on notice from member for Gympie and opposition infrastructure spokesman David Gibson.

Mr Gibson said both sides of politics, at state and federal levels, had ignored problems with the stretch for too long- a notion that the data confirmed.

“It’s a killer stretch and the numbers reiterate it’s the worst stretch of highway in Australia,” Mr Gibson said.

“We’ve seen some money but no where near enough.

“It’s a blight on both sides it has got to this point. Work should have started in 2000.”

Mr Gibson said improvements to other sections needed to start as soon as possible.

“It’s about saving lives,” he said.

He also refuted arguments drivers rather than the road were to blame saying there was no margin for error on the stretch.

In his response to Mr Gibson’s question, Mr Wallace said the construction contract for the $488 million upgrade of the 12km section between Sankeys Road and Traveston Road, which will be funded by the Australian government, would be awarded in September and the project was scheduled for completion by early 2012.

Upgrades to the section where 15 lives were lost in the time period were prioritised because the area was of the “greatest safety concern”, Mr Wallace said.

“The Bruce Highway is part of the national network and funding is a federal government responsibility,” he said.

“I will continue to press for additional funding to ensure construction progresses on the remaining sections of this priority project.”


Cooroy to Curra crashes 2000-2008

Cooroy to Sankeys Road

169 crashes, 19 people killed, 67 people hospitalised

Sankeys Road to Traveston Road

127 crashes, 15 people killed, 48 people hospitalised

Traveston Road to Keefton Road

140 crashes, 12 people killed, 73 people hospitalised

Keefton Road to Curra

404 crashes, 10 people killed, 107 people hospitalised