“It’s expected that the Edmonton to Gordonvale section of the Bruce Highway will be used by about 40,000 road users daily when the works are completed, and I have no doubt they’ll be very well-received by commuters travelling through Far North Queensland.
“When finished, it’s expected that the project will boost safety and reduce travel times on this section of the Bruce Highway,” said Federal Member for Leichhardt Warren Entsch.
Stage 3 will involve the duplication of road from Collinson Creek in Edmonton to the east of the existing highway as far as Wrights Creek. The project will also be removing the North Coast rail line to the east.
The new 10-kilometre alignment will be duplicating the existing highway on the western side which will create two extra lanes through to Gordonvale. Stage 3 will incorporate the existing four-lane section at Meringa and will be moving the existing rail line at Maher Road to the east.
According to Queensland Treasurer and Member for Mulgrave Curtis Pitt MP, Stage 3 of the Cairns Southern Access Corridor is part of the Cairns Bruce Highway Master Plan.
“This proposed alignment between Edmonton and Gordonvale will be an extension of the work already completed. Reduced traffic delays are already being experienced following completion of Stage 1 of the Cairns Bruce Highway Upgrade to the Cairns Southern Access, between Sheehy Road and Ray Jones Drive.
“We see this is a priority project; every dollar spent on improving the Bruce Highway means more jobs are created to support locals, their families and the Far North Queensland economy,” Mr Pitt said.
Construction on Stage 3 of the Cairns Southern Access Corridor, between Edmonton and Gordonvale, is expected to commence in 2020.
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Source: Queensland Government and QLD Department of Transport and Main Roads