Surging ahead on Haughton

MAY 2, 2017: The vital upgrade of the Haughton River Floodplain, which includes the replacement of the Haughton River Bridge, has been brought forward by nine months and tenders for the design and construction of the project will be called this week. This work cannot come soon enough.The replacement of the Haughton River Bridge has been voted the most urgent problem to be fixed on this stretch of the Bruce Highway between Mackay and Townsville.Flooding at the Haughton severely impacts the highway for days on end, with floodwaters sometimes extending five kilometres south and nine kilometres north of the Haughton River Bridge.It’s essential that roads stay open during flooding so communities stay connected, and the ability to potentially bring this work forward by almost a year is a great win for the people of the Burdekin and Townsville regions.I understand that rapid progress is now being made on the project with extensive hydrological modelling, geotechnical and environmental investigations done, along with ongoing consultation with landowners.The $515 million project Bruce Highway will floodproof a 14 kilometre stretch of the Bruce, about 30 kilometres north of Ayr and 50 kilometres south of Townsville.The Haughton River Floodplain upgrade is a jointly funded project with the Australian Government providing up to $412 million and the Queensland Government $103 million.