Road safety improvements vital for the Greater Whitsunday region.
The impact of road closures to Greater Whitsunday region’s industries and communities is costing us dearly.
According to The Greater Possibilities for Greater Whitsunday and Queensland election priorities, released last week, roads in our region are susceptible to constant road closures.
Across the region there have been an average 71.8 road closures for 140.6 days each year in response to a weather event or incident.
Greater Whitsunday Alliance (GW3) Chief Executive Officer Ms Kylie Porter said the region’s roads were impacted due to cyclones, major rain events and road crashes.
“Average rainfall in Mackay is up to 3 times higher than South East Queensland.
“In January 2023 there was a significant flooding event that closed 56 roads within the Whitsunday LGA for between three to four days.
“In addition to regular rain events, closures after cyclones due to poor road infrastructure significantly hampers a community’s recovery and our region’s ability to remain productive and continue delivering to the state’s bottom line,” Ms Porter said.
“In the last 55 years, 18 recorded tropical cyclones have passed the Mackay, Isaac, Whitsunday region, with five of those since 2010.
Ms Porter said the Greater Whitsunday region makes an oversized contribution to the Queensland economy, with a total economic output of $74.4B each year.
“Our regional economic contribution across key industries including mining and METS, agriculture, aquaculture and tourism is significant and demonstrates our region’s strategic importance to the Queensland economy.
“Two of our powerhouse industries, mining and agriculture, lose significant revenue each year due to the disruption stemming from road closures.
“Analysis shows that our economy is losing $287M in revenue annually directly as a result of road closures,” said Ms Porter.
Queensland Farmers’ Federation Chief Executive Officer, Jo Sheppard, echoed these concerns, emphasising the importance of road reliability and safety for the agricultural sector and rural communities.
Ms Sheppard said road safety is important to the liveability of regional communities like the Greater Whitsunday region.
“A long-term commitment and investment plan is needed so that Queensland's road network does not fall behind acceptable safety standards and keeps up with the growth our state is currently experiencing and expecting in the future.
Queensland Farmers’ Federation believe the task of ensuring our road network is maintained to an appropriate standard is a challenge.
“But it is a challenge we cannot shy away from as roads remain essential infrastructure for the supply chain of the agricultural sector and for the liveability and viability of rural communities,” Ms Sheppard said.
Road Accident Action Group (RAAG) Chair Rod Erwin highlighted the urgent need for enhanced road safety measures and infrastructure upgrades to address increasing road usage and associated risks.
“The number and severity of road crashes throughout the region is escalating at an alarming rate, our Bruce Highway and Peak Downs Highways have received some upgrades, but these have not kept up with road usage.”
In 2023, across the Greater Whitsunday region there were 21 fatal crashes, 545 injury crashes and 291 non-injury crashes.
Mr Erwin said the region’s busiest roads were the Bruce and Peak Downs Highways, transport corridors where there is intersection between light and heavy vehicles including wide loads.
“These roads within the Bowen Basin area have the highest number of wide loads in Australia.
“As our region and its industry continues to grow thus increasing road usage, we need to ensure infrastructure and maintenance is also increased according to demand.”
The Greater Possibilities for Greater Whitsunday and Queensland election priorities document outlines strategic initiatives and investment commitments needed for the Greater Whitsunday region.
The advocacy document highlights the importance of the region’s ongoing contribution to Queensland’s economic prosperity in the lead up to the Queensland state election on Saturday October 26.
You can read the full Greater Possibilities for Greater Whitsunday and Queensland election priorities document here.
You can read the Costing Queensland Dearly: The economic impact of road closures to the Greater Whitsunday Region here.
Greater Whitsunday Alliance is the region’s peak, independent economic development body committed to making the Mackay, Isaac, Whitsunday region strong for generations.