June 8, 2023
Road users have been left angry with the constant road works on the Bruce Highway.
Member for Hill Shane Knuth said if there was a stretch of road and roadworks users were fed up with it was the El Arish range section of the Bruce Highway.
“We have not seen as much frustration from the community than with this section of road and people are over it,” Mr Knuth said.
“There have been two painful sections of road works, along the Smiths Gap/ El Arish Range which has be drawn out over a number of years which include Smiths Gap, and the pavement rehabilitation works further southwards.
““There are numerous complaints about stop and go lights with no workers on site, reports of a number of serious accidents in this area and the costing, to get this one section right, has blown out.
“Drivers continually being held up at the number of stop and go lights causing people to be late for work and appointments.”
He said he had continuously raised this section of road works with Transport and Main Roads and expressed his and the community’s frustration.
Cassowary Coast Regional Council deputy mayor Barry Barnes said council had receive a lot of complaints as well.
“I am very frustrated and so are a lot of my constituents about the road works that are being repeated,” deputy mayor Barnes said.
“They were only done a very short time ago and it is a safety issue. We have had incident after incident here and now the cane season has commenced.
“Farmers are being affected by not being able to cross the road.
“Where is the quality assurance? We have spent millions on doing the road previously and now they are digging it up once again.
“If our ratepayers saw us doing that, I think there would be hell to pay.”