Take a Captain Cook at when our highway will be fixed
Works to fix the Captain Cook Highway between Port Douglas and Cairns will begin this year - “weather conditions permitting” - according to the State Government’s Transport and Main Roads Department.
But the crucial service route is not expected to be fully repaired until at least mid 2026, a TMR spokesperson, who declined to be named, said.
“Where possible, works will begin in late 2024, and continue in 2025, site and weather conditions permitting,” they said.
“There are some reconstruction works we can undertake and manage within the constraints of a normal wet season.”
There were more than 50 “geotechnical failure sites” on the highway that needed to be fixed following damage last December from Cyclone Jasper, along with subsequent flooding.
“Due to the scope of reconstruction works and heavy equipment required, full hard closures at night will be needed at times for the safety of road users and reconstruction crew,” the spokesperson said.
“Changed traffic conditions including reduced speed limits, single-lane closures and manual and permanent traffic control will be in place for the duration of the works.”
TMR is currently working on more than 950 projects to restore roads across Queensland damaged by floods and bushfires.
There are more than 170 landslip sites needing fixing in the Far North Queensland region, including Kuranda Range Road, Palmerston Highway, Gillies Range Road, Mossman–Mount Molloy Road and Shiptons Flat Road.
TMR has finished all the emergency works and critical slope stabilisation to enable key routes to stay open.
“Disaster recovery will be a long-term process, involving an extensive program of works and complex solutions for multiple range roads that wind through World Heritage rainforest areas,” a TMR statement reads.
The works were being jointly funded by the federal and Queensland governments through Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements.
The public will be kept fully informed about changes to traffic conditions, including road closures, and will be given as much advanced warning as possible, according to TMR.
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