The cost of the Archer River bridge, which the Department of Transport and Main Roads says should be open to traffic by the end of 2024, has blown out from $32.3m to almost $131.3m as the result of “significant geological challenges”. Photo: Lyndon Keane.
The State Government is recycling 18-month-old lines about the causes of an almost $100 million blowout in construction costs for the long-awaited Archer River bridge.
As construction continues in a race to finish the project before the 2024 wet season, it has been revealed the vital infrastructure will now cost $131.252m due in part to major geotechnical issues at the site.
The bridge was initially budgeted to cost $32.3m before then-transport minister Mark Bailey admitted in January 2023 “significant geotechnical challenges” had been identified and would result in a cost jump to $44.8m and a completion delay.
“To overcome these challenges, the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) has had to make changes to the design and construction methodology, which will increase construction cost and delay completion,” he said at the time.
The project is being delivered as part of stage two of the Cape York Region Package (CYRP), a jointly-funded State and Federal Government plan to improve road infrastructure in the northernmost part of mainland Queensland.
When Cape York Weekly asked TMR last week what the estimated completion date and overall cost for the bridge now were, a department spokesperson provided a response almost identical to that offered by the government more than 18 months ago.
“The Archer River crossing project has experienced industry-wide cost and resource pressures, like many other infrastructure programs across Australia,” the spokesperson said.
“The project has also experienced significant geological challenges and as, a result, TMR had to make changes to the design and construction methodology, which impacted the overall construction cost.
“The funding commitment allocated for Archer River crossing … is $131.252 million.”
The admission comes after a Cairns forum heard in June the Peninsula Developmental Road (PDR) was a “lifeline, not a road” for Cape York residents and business operators, and that the final stages of the CYRP should be made a funding priority for Brisbane and Canberra.
It is estimated when the bridge opens, the Archer River section of the PDR will only be closed for two or three days each year, down from a current figure of about 85 days.
While the bridge was initially promoted as being ready for use in 2022, Cape York road users have since been playing a waiting game for the infrastructure to be finished.
The TMR spokesperson said it was now expected vehicles would be using the new bridge and approaches instead of the existing river crossing by the end of the year.
“The Archer River bridge is expected to be open to traffic by late 2024, weather and construction conditions permitting,” the spokesperson said.
