At least part of the flood-damaged Cunningham Highway, which stretches 327 kilometres from Ipswich to Goondiwindi, is to receive some much needed road improvements funding.
The route is well used by grey nomads and truckies, but its condition has been deteriorating dramatically in recent years due to constant flooding and a lack of upgrade work.
While the state of the road is not thought to have been a factor, a grey nomad couple were extremely lucky to escape serious injury or worse earlier this month when a truck struck their caravan as they turned off the highway into a campground west of Warwick.
However, thanks to by $10 million in funding from the Australian Government and $2.5 million from the Queensland State Government, major reconstruction work will be carried out at Warrill View, about 80 kilometres north-east of Warwick, the first road rehabilitation at the site in more than 20 years.
“Warrill View, as we know, has copped some pretty bad flooding these last few years and all that water over the Cunningham Highway, plus a rise in the number of trucks and cars using it every day, has weakened the strength of the road,” the Federal Member for Wright, Scott Buchholz, told the Queensland Times. “This section of the Cunningham Hwy alone carries nearly 5000 vehicles a day, more than a quarter of which are heavy vehicles, so this project will make the road safer for thousands of motorists.”
Work will be done on the highway from the intersection of Bath St near Warrill View State School to 3km south, with construction expected to get under way in late 2016 and be finished by early 2018.
The Queensland Times reports that the Cunningham Highway upgrade will also include a focus on flood immunity for the 3km section of highway, with the newly-laid road to be stronger to help with flood mitigation and future road use.
* How have you found the condition of the Cunningham Highway? Comment below.
