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$3.53b road upgrades to fix Qld danger zones

The most dangerous intersections on Queensland roads will be upgraded with a record $3.53 billion spend this financial year

By Samantha Freestone | March 12, 2010

The most dangerous intersections on Queensland roads will be upgraded with a record $3.53 billion spend this financial year.

Minister for Main Roads Craig Wallace has revealed work is being carried out on 20 dangerous intersections in Queensland after three years of figures confirm the most dangerous ‘hotspots’ on state and council roads.

Roads on the Gold Coast, in Brisbane, Cairns, Townsville, South Brisbane, Proserpine, Fortitude Valley and Marsden will all be upgraded or are being investigated.

But 10 of the 20 roads earmarked for upgrades were not given budgets in the statement Wallace released this morning and several roads listed in the release have either already received funding, have already been completed or have been relegated to federal responsibility.

These include the Duckworth Street/Townsville Port Road intersection in Townsville and the Redlynch Connector Road/Cairns Western Arterial Road where Wallace says improvements were carried out “two years ago”.

But he did confirm since the upgrades there have been no serious incidents at that juncture.

“They’re busy intersections with high volumes of traffic. We take road safety seriously and that’s why we’re rolling out a record $3.53 billion this financial year to upgrade our roads,” Wallace says.

Intersections with the most accidents over the three-year stretch were the Bermuda Street/Markeri Street intersection, the Hooker Boulevard/Southport /Burleigh Road intersection and the Queen Street/Wharf Street/Eagle Street intersection all with 10 serious incidents recorded.

Roads with specific budgets in the upgrade include:

  • The Bermuda Street/Markeri Street intersection in the Gold Coast – $600,000 worth of improvements to start in July. Additionally, $400,000 will also be spent next year on better street lighting, right-turn lanes and road signs
  • The Hooker Boulevard/Southport-Burleigh Road intersection in the Gold Coast – $1.5 million has been set aside for improved traffic signals, gantry signs, better street lighting and line marking and anti-skid treatments
  • The Toolona Street/Gold Coast Highway intersection in the Gold Coast region – a $4 million project that includes work to upgrade the intersection is expected to get under way mid-year
  • The Fison Avenue West/Gateway Motorway off-ramp in Brisbane – work will be carried out as part of the $1.88 billion Gateway upgrade
  • The Warrego Highway/Villis Road/Fielding Road in south-west Queensland – an $800,000 safety upgrade already completed this year
  • The Mt-Gravatt-Capalaba Road/Gateway Arterial Road on-off ramp in Brisbane – a planning study is under way at a cost of $9 million, jointly funded by the federal and state governments.
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