Major works on the $1.162 billion Gympie Bypass in Queensland are on track to be completed in October 2024, following confirmation from the official commissioning event at the Gympie Bypass Community Day.
Federal Assistant Minister for Regional Development, Senator Anthony Chisholm and Queensland Minister for Transport and Main Roads Bart Mellish made the announcement regarding the completion date, weather and construction conditions permitting, at the event on Saturday (August 17).
The project has involved constructing a new 26-kilometre, four-lane divided highway between the existing Bruce Highway interchange at Woondum, just south of Gympie, and Curra.
It is the final section of a 62-kilometre, $2.549 billion program of works to upgrade the Bruce Highway between Cooroy and Curra.
The project will improve traffic flow, as the upgrade will avoid 53 intersections (including 9 signalised intersections) and 106 property accesses which contribute to current safety and congestion issues on the existing Bruce Highway.
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It will also help to improve safety and capacity through the separation of long-distance traffic from local traffic. This will reduce traffic volumes on the highway travelling through Gympie, with around 50 per cent fewer heavy vehicles.
Queensland Minister for Transport and Main Roads, Bart Mellish said the project has been monumental for the Gympie region.
“We are so close to the finish line now, with the final works underway to prepare the new highway for traffic,” Mellish said.
“Our construction partners have built 42 bridges at 23 locations, moved more than 6 million cubic metres of earth, and laid over 142 kilometres of pavement and 610,000 tonnes of asphalt.”
The $1.162 billion Gympie Bypass is jointly funded, with the Federal Government committing $929.6 million and the Queensland Government contributing $232.4 million.
Construction of the overall Cooroy to Curra program began in September 2009.