Bruce Highway funding shortage could prove deadly
Alarming crash data released by RACQ has revealed a desperate need for life-saving upgrades along the Bruce Highway.
Between 2018 and 2022, 149 people lost their lives in 129 separate fatal crashes on the Bruce Highway. Of those, 54% (81 fatalities) were head-on collisions and almost 80% (118 fatalities) occurred in 100-110km/h speed zones*.
The Club’s Head of Public Policy, Dr Michael Kane, said the majority of the Bruce Highway was dangerous in its current state and called on the Federal Government to urgently reverse its decision to wind back future infrastructure funding.
“The Federal Government’s decision to reduce its infrastructure funding split with the State Government from 80:20 to 50:50 shortchanges Queenslanders,” Dr Kane said.
“It will force the State Government to choose between future regional upgrades, leading to project delays and consequences for our communities, economy, road safety, health system and natural disaster resilience.
“The Bruce Highway is the backbone of our State. It’s a critical national link for tourism and freight and is in desperate need of upgrades and maintenance.
“Head on collisions make up the majority of fatal crashes on the Bruce Highway because more than 1,000 kilometres of the road is still single lane, narrow, unforgiving and lacks physical traffic separation.”
Dr Kane said using data to fund safety and resilience upgrades in the right places will save lives.
“We’re calling for an acceleration of the wide centre-line program, and future investment in overtaking lanes and upgrades that physically separate oncoming traffic, such as median safety barriers and dual carriageways,” he said.
“Physical median barriers can reduce road casualties by 60% or more, while wide centre lines can lower the chance of fatal and serious injuries by 25%**.
“Upgrades will save lives. Not all are cheap, but the benefits for our community, health system, economic productivity and people’s livelihoods well and truly outweigh the costs. We need all levels of government stepping up to fund their fair share.”
RACQ addressed Bruce Highway funding concerns in its 2024/25 Pre-Budget Submission to the Federal Government and will continue to raise them in the lead up to the State Election this year.
High-risk Bruce Highway sections RACQ identified for priority upgrades^:
*Data sourced from the Queensland Government
**Data sourced from iRAP Road Safety Toolkit
^AusRAP crash data analysed by RACQ (data refers to high-speed, non-urban sections of the Bruce Highway)