Community
12 September, 2024
Range safety upgrades
MORE than $260 million is to be spent upgrading the Kuranda Range Rd after reconstruction works to repair the damage caused during and after Cyclone Jasper.
The aim is to improve safety on the Kennedy Highway between Smithfield and Kuranda by reducing the amount and length of unplanned closures of the road.
The Albanese government is investing $210m and the Miles government is providing $52.5m.
The upgrades include:
A safe turn-around area, suitable for vehicles up to 19m (including semi-trailers), to provide an option to turn around and change travel plans in case the road is unexpectedly closed. It is expected to be near the Black Mountain Rd intersection in the form of a roundabout.
A concrete median barrier at the bend locally known as ‘The Hairpin’ (before the start of the first upward overtaking lanes) to reduce the risk of head-on crashes.
A further 10 Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) technology stations covering a further 5.5km to provide real time information to traffic management centre operators to detect hazards, and monitor changes in road conditions and traffic behaviour.
Other work includes additional guardrails, shoulder widening, centre line treatments, vegetation management and slope stability treatments.
The work is expected to start mid-2026 after reconstruction ends.
Queensland Transport and Main Roads Minister Bart Mellish said the works were safety-related and he did not rule out a study for an alternative route.
“If there is need for a study into alternative routes, we’re happy to look at that,” he said.
But Mr Mellish said “initial work that we’ve done has shown that it (the study) would not be needed until 2050” with the road able to handle the volumes of traffic , according to a disputed Cairns to Northern Tablelands Access Strategy.“But if there is a desire to look at this, we’re happy to look at this if it can fit in with the funding package that we’ve got from the federal government,” he said.
Member for Barron River Craig Crawford said the road was a vital lifeline to Cairns for everyone travelling to and from Kuranda, the Atherton Tablelands and beyond.
“Every road user wants it to be as safe and efficient as possible. I’m assured that TMR’s priority on Kuranda Range Road is the long-term repair works of the sections damaged by the massive flooding in post-Tropical Cyclone Jasper,” he said.
He revealed that analysis by Smithfield police found that the majority of the drivers involved in crashes on the road were locals, who were often speeding, not driving to the conditions and had poor tyres – not tourists in rental cars.
