School parking issues ‘in long grass’

IT has long been the suspicion of this column that the needs of the Gold Coast languish low on the to-do list of a State Government that struggles to gaze beyond Brisbane.

One can gauge with reasonable accuracy their level of interest in any particular subject by measuring the distance from George St.

Which puts the southern Gold Coast at the absolute bottom of the list.

So while Brisbane will get its $5.4 billion Cross River Rail without a single cent of federal funding, the light rail to Burleigh cannot go ahead unless Canberra stumps up 38 per cent of the cost.

While the M1 in south Brisbane and the northern Gold Coast has long since been widened and exits are now being upgraded, further south, work has yet to be completed on expanding the

road from just two lanes each way.

And as for extending heavy rail to the airport – probably the one transport project that could do most to reduce congestion in southern suburbs – well, there are more concrete plans for missions to Mars.

None of this is new. Residents of the southern Gold Coast have grown accustomed to being ignored in Brisbane.

What is unusual, however, is to hear a senior State Government Minister openly admit that the needs of the capital take precedence.

Education Minister Grace Grace appeared to do as much during a recent Estimates hearing.

Asked by Currumbin MP Jann Stuckey about the longrunning campaign to secure much-needed extra parking for Tallebudgera State School, Minister Grace brushed aside the question as insignificant compared to issues faced in her Brisbane seat of McConnel.

“Member, as an aside, you would not have any parking problems like I have in my inner-city electorate,” the Minister remarked.

Minister Grace is right. With its rolling hills and abundant greenery, Tallebudgera is most unlike areas such as Bowen Hills, Newstead and Fortitude Valley, which she represents.

Its residents are lucky to live in such a wonderful community.

But that does not make Tallebudgera’s issues any less important, much less one touching on the safety of primary school-aged children.

Ms Stuckey told this column she was stunned by the attitude expressed by the Minister, accusing her of dismissing the “genuine concerns” of the school population with “flippant remarks”.

“As far as I’m concerned they’ve kicked it out into the long grass and have no intention at all of going any further with it, which is really crushing,” Ms Stuckey said.

“She was just arrogant ... and it also tells you that the southern Gold Coast is really not on their priority list.”

The Currumbin MP said she believed that politics was getting in the way of good governance.

It’s hard not to agree. The need for better parking at Tallebudgera State School is clear and urgent.

While no school can claim to have a car park on its grounds for everyone that needs one, most are at least surrounded by suburban streets where safe parking is an option.

Tallebudgera, however, is located by a busy roundabout, on hilly terrain. Parents of the school’s 796 students unable to secure a spot at its paltry 26space car park, or on a small 10-berth strip on Guineas Creek Rd, face pulling up at least half a kilometre away. That’s quite a distance – especially if you’re walking uphill, and have little Prep legs.

It’s no wonder the P&C regularly runs raffles in which the prize is a guaranteed car park.

More importantly, the parking issue raises obvious safety concerns.

“There’s a danger issue,” Ms Stuckey said. “You don’t want kids being maimed and hurt ... This school is literally part of a roundabout. It’s a big road that cuts through and one that cuts across. You’ve got traffic coming in four directions.”

Most frustrating is that the school is surrounded by largely undeveloped land, some of it owned by Energex. If the political will was there, a solution could surely be found at relatively low cost. But then this is not Brisbane.

The Department of Education was unable to respond to requests for comment before deadline. Too busy, no doubt, with allimportant matters in the River City. But in answering a Question on Notice from Ms Stuckey in May, Minister Grace said: “There is no budget currently allocated to the acquisition of land to augment the Tallebudgera State School site.”

But there’s more than $5 billion available to sink into Cross River Rail.

A measure, if ever there was one, of priorities on George St.