If the roads in the north seem an awful lot busier than normal, it’s because they are … and newly released data shows just how dramatic the traffic increase has been.
In WA, Main Roads reports that the Kimberley region is the busiest it has ever been.
Traffic count data shows vehicles on the Broome Highway reached a record peak in July.
“It’s currently up around 3,000 vehicles per day, which is by far one of our busier roads,” Gerry Zoetelief, Kimberley Main Roads manager, told the ABC. “That’s up around 25% consistently over the year but, during the school holidays, we saw the traffic jump up to 3,400 vehicles per day.”
Traffic on the newly sealed Cape Leveque Road north of Broome was up 50%, with about 490 vehicles daily.
“Back in 2019 when we started counting traffic on the road, traffic was sitting around 330 vehicles per day,” Mr Zoetelief told the ABC. “Since it’s been sealed, we noticed that in July the average traffic is now up around 480 or 490 per day.
Modest increases were recorded on the iconic Gibb River Road with about 450 vehicles a day instead of 380.
The ABC reports that, normally, 700 vehicles would pass the Sandfire Roadhouse on the Great Northern Highway every day.
“We’re about 20% higher on Great Northern Highway for traffic coming up from the south,” Mr Zoetelief said. “We’re probably at an extra 140 vehicles a day.”
In places such as Broome, residents, hospitality providers and tour operators have reported being overwhelmed by visitor numbers, as domestic tourism within WA reaches boiling point.
