A good chunk of Peninsula Development Road (PDR) on the Cape has been sealed, but there’s a long way to go. Photo: Regional Development Australia Tropical North.
The widespread social benefits of improving the lifeline Peninsula Development Road (PDR) and its access roads were outlined during the latest Cape York Region Package forum update at Cairns.
Mobile breast cancer checks have rolled out to areas accessible by newly sealed roads across the peninsula – just one example of how the infrastructure program can improve access to services for remote residents, and why work needs to be finished as soon as possible.
Regional Development Australia Tropical North hosted Friday’s (8 May) community forum at Cairns Council Chambers with the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR). About 30 of the bi-annual forums have been held to date.
TMR district director (Far North) Darryl Jones said 173 km of the PDR was sealed in Stage 1, while 38 km had been sealed in Stage 2, with about 10 km more to go. About 160 km will remain unsealed after Stage 2.
Realistically, it will be years before extensive work on the PDR and access roads is finished and the package wraps up, with a fifth stage on the cards. Some at the forum bandied around a 2045 finish date.
There has been a “massive increase” in construction costs since Stage 2 started, lead presenter and package taskforce co-chair Professor Allan Dale said.
Stage 2 has focused on sealing priority sections and on infrastructure including the Archer River and Saltwater Creek bridges at a cost of $323.13 million – of which $258.5m came from the Federal Government and $64.63m from the Queensland Government.
Pending Stage 2 work includes sealing 2.4 km between Yarraden and Three Sisters, 9.3 km between Musgrave and Red Blanket and 2.4 km between Koolburra to south of Hann.
Work has also been undertaken under the Community Access Roads Program (CARP) to seal sections of primary access routes to Indigenous communities. Northern Peninsula Road is next in line.
The state has already earmarked $60m for Stage 3 and it’s hoped the Commonwealth will pay for 80 per cent of the work with $240m.
“50-50 ain’t going to work,” Prof Dale said.
Work being carried out. Photo: Supplied.
TMR is due to prepare a Project Proposal Report and 20 per cent of Stage 3 funds will be used on access roads.
Proposed initial Stage 3 projects include renewing Myall Creek bridge and work around Myall, Sudley, Merluna, York Downs, Koolburra and south Hann.
Prof Dale said crash black spots and “real tension points” preventing travel between communities would be a focus.
It’s expected future work around Weipa may be complex due to Rio Tinto’s bauxite mining lease covering 400,000 hectares.
“It’s actually the easiest to do, but it’s the hardest to do because it’s [the roads] in the Rio lease … ” Prof Dale said.
Attendees also heard that there was less of an economic or productivity business case to make to the Commonwealth regarding Cape road funding due to the relatively small number of people using the roads – roughly 500 a day on average.
But social and health ramifications of improvements are huge. In some cases, the poor state of the Cape’s public roads could even be considered a human rights issue because it limits access to food, medical care and social services, the forum heard.
Prof Dale said those involved needed to “tell the bigger story” and “what this means for the region” when fighting for funding.
Cape York Region Package work has been going on for well over a decade. Photo: TMR.
Local government representatives included Cook Shire Council Mayor Robyn Holmes, Northern Peninsula Area Regional Council Mayor Robert Poi Poi and Mapoon Aboriginal Shire Council CEO Chad King.
Federal Leichhardt MP Matt Smith attended, while Cook MP David Kempton could not make it, but was briefed.
Ms Holmes told the forum “the whole PDR unsealed section sits in Cook Shire” and it was “really important we try and get that [federal] funding”.
Mr Poi Poi was also passionate about ensuring his community was properly served by the package.
“In terms of advocacy, my strong interest is around community access roads,” he said.
Mr King said his community was a “key customer” of the PDR and it was “cut off for wet season every year”.
“And our neighbour councils on the western side of the Cape are also dependent on logistics in and out of Weipa and connecting it,” he said.
Better roads would also be helpful for emergency broadcasting purposes, an ABC Far North attendee noted.
