Forde focus on gridlock

M1 pledges to be sought during federal campaign

BOTH the Coalition and Labor will be asked to promise funding to upgrade congested M1 interchanges with traffic gridlock emerging as the hot issue in a marginal federal seat.

A day after Acting Mayor Donna Gates called for an end of the “blame game” on highway funding, she met with State Transport Minister Mark Bailey and they both put the spotlight on the lack of Commonwealth funding.

Candidates in the northern Coast seat of Forde, one of the most marginal in Australia held by the Government, will be asked to pledge funding in the lead-up to the next poll.

The Bulletin yesterday revealed more than half of traffic at congested interchanges in the city’s north were just trying to cross the M1.

Mr Bailey and Cr Gates emerged from yesterday’s meeting having discussed planning solutions like more buses and extra lanes on arterial roads but their combined political message was aimed at the Federal election candidates.

They also supported a transport summit being held on the Coast involving all three levels of government to fast track solutions and spending.

“We need to get together and today we have agreed that the federal government needs to come on board as well,” Cr Gates said. “At an officer level, the Minister and I have agreed that we want our officers to work with the federal government officers and the Department of Transport and Main Roads.

“We want solutions. We are trying to fast track budgeting to allocate funding for the necessary upgrades, but we need the planning completed and the designs done.”

Mr Bailey said the Palaszczuk Government would meet its $25 million election commitment to upgrade the Oxenford Interchange and planning was under way for other M1 exits at Pimpama, Ormeau and Yatala.

“You just can’t do them in a month or two months. You actually need a whole lot of different technical people – engineers, stakeholders, different levels of government – to get it right,” he said.

“So each interchange has its own particular road patterns and feeders. All the data punching has to be done about that. Everyone of them is going to be a little different.”

Forde takes in Coomera and is held by the Coalition’s Bert van Manen (0.6 per cent margin) who faces the ALP’s Des Hardman, a renowned grassroots campaigner.