BOOST BRUCE
A BRUCE Highway upgrade that improves traffic flow for southside residents has been dubbed the catalyst to further drive calls to extend the National Highway past Cairns City.
The $58 million southern access upgrade, which bumped up the stretch from Foster Rd to Robert Rd from four lanes to six lanes, was officially opened in Bentley Park yesterday.
Federal Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch said the time was right to advocate a National Highway extension, with money also committed to the $152m Smithfield Bypass to ease congestion for the northern beaches.
“We now need to really push hard to get the extension of the National Highway,” he said.
“At last we’ve got all the different stakeholders singing from the same hymn book, all of them supporting it, and now we’ve got to step up the campaign to get it finished.”
The National Highway currently stops at the Port of Cairns.
Local leaders have pushed a plan to connect the Captain Cook Highway and Bruce Highway between Smithfield and Portsmith to become a National Highway.
The move would create a ring road around the city, improving access to Cairns Airport and enhancing the freight route from the Tablelands.
The project would place the airport as a key export and service hub.
Treasurer Curtis Pitt said the State Government was doing its part.
“The National Highway has itself very clearly defined end points,” he said
“We know there is a big conversation about a ring road ... we are very excited by these prospects but that is the next big piece of negotiation that needs to happen.”
Consultation is also underway for a Bruce Highway duplication for the stretch between Edmonton and Gordonvale.
Mr Pitt said new communities such as Mt Peter were pushing strong population growth rates and attractiveness of commercial investment south of the city.
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