The Bruce goat track

aussietraveller · Guru

The Bruce goat track

Happywanderer · The Master

I was in the Childers to Gin Gin area today on the Bruce Highway. I totally agree with you. A shocking road that needs lots of work, but there were a lot of road works going on also so hopefully they will get their A into G and do something about it.

billeeeeeee · Guru

Try the trip from Longreach to Toowoomba,,,,,a disgrace,,,,,camels would refuse to walk down it,,,,, Howdyeeeeeee Nutteeeeeee Nomads, what an exciting day we had,,,Mingled with Nomads all day, Some Singles from CMCA they were taking the crap out of it ,,all the bloody rules and regulations,..,,Bugger,,,Ps , stay excited Aussietraveller might catch U out there somewhere,,,,Billeeeeeee

Sheba · Guru

Car-load of Pollies has just driven the Bruce Highway, arriving [if they got there ok,] in Townsville tonight. Supposed to be to check out condition of same.

Wonder if it will make any difference.

Cheers,

Sheba.

justcruisin01 · Guru

aussietraveller wrote:
I have just travelled down the Bruce highway Mossman to Bundaberg and I do not recall travelling on a major highway in such apalling condition, I know there has been flooding through the area and this takes time to repair, but its obvious when you travel the road that it has been let go and allowed to deteriate for long before the flooding.
We have seen several accidents which could be attributed to the road condition including two army vehicles.
We have also sustained damage to the Caravan due to rough roads and potholes that you could loose a car in.
Not happy

be prepaired for more of it as head south, there is endless kls of road works all the way to the freeway.

JC.

Yuglamron · Guru

Might have been better to have a decent highway than a National Broadband network.

In My opinion.

Reference the Pollies trip on the Bruce/First day out they damaged the vehicle they were travelling in hitting the potholes.

Speaks volumes doesn't it.

Cruising Granny · Guru

I agree Yuglamron. I was shocked in 2008 when I traversed the Bruce from Brissy to Cairns. What an absolute disgrace for a national highway. Apart from the apalling condition it was too narrow, there's no shoulder or verge, no where to go if you have to pull over, as there's no where to pull to.
It's a very busy highway. While it was subject to flooding, surely it should be able to withstand some pressure.
The surface must be so thin.
Since I've been doing pilot work my greatest fear is they send me to Qld with an oversize on the Bruce. The road between Roma and Emerald is worse than some dirt roads I've been on.
Mind you, the road from the Gold Coast to the Sunshine Coast is really good.
I've just done the Goldfields Highway to inland WA, the Pilbara to Perth, and to Adelaide. No complaints there, although some of the WA highway is deteriorated.
No tolls in the city either. So where are those tolls being spent apart from the corporations who run them?

rocan · Veteran Member

if north qld was made a seperate state we would have the best roads in australia.roads would be rebuilt and not just patched like is happening at the moment.politicians should learn there is more to qld than the south east.lost track how many have done the road trip by car and said how bad the road is then done nothing about it.

when we go caravaning from townsville we always head west then south thru the central roads.better roads and less traffic

rocan

bill12 · Guru

We play good foot ball here!

-- Edited by bill12 on Friday 20th of July 2012 04:13:18 PM

tiger5 · Senior Member

Come on ,all queenslanders I have spoken to say that EVERY thing is better there.

brickies · Guru

I must have travel the other Bruce Hwy I thought it was much better this year than last year, And yet to find these big pot holes maybe easy pleased

-- Edited by brickies on Friday 20th of July 2012 05:55:40 PM

Cruising Granny · Guru

As a national highway it's very dangerous. This highway kills people. There's the broken surface up north, and the road is very narrow. There's no shoulder or verge beyond the fog line. If you are confronted by a vehicle out of control you can't take evasive action. Any evasive action would send you down a 5-10 metre shoulder.
If you've driven on NT, SA or WA roads you would understand how roads should be built. The Bruce is not it. In fact I've come to the conclusion the Qld doesn't know how to build a safe, adequate highway.
Once again I must ask, where are the tolls going?

tonyd · Guru

Ho hum, yet ANOTHER reason to avoid Queensland. Not that I needed one. There's so much to see in the rest of mainland, grown-up Australia.

Just think of Queensland's contributions to our nation: Bjelke-Petersen, Qantas, Anna Bligh, cane toads. Won't go on. Too depressing.

barrie · Guru

Travelled from Maryborough to Gin GIN today and yes the road is a goat track but all the money get's spent on improving traffic flow in the main cities where the votes are

bill12 · Guru

I can see that many of you haven,t traveled along the Pacific hywayfrom Tweed heads south. If the bruce is bad , the pacific holeway is just as bad, and more dangerous as there is more traffic. Huge rains and cyclones don,t do anybody any good. If anybody doesn,t want to go to Qld, don,t come- its that simple.Bill

Happywanderer · The Master

My daughter and family came up via the Pacific last week. They said never again, shyte roads and roadworks every few ks. They are going inland next week to go back home.

Cruising Granny · Guru

I'll bear that in mind. I haven't been that was since 1972, so it might be a while longer.
I was offered ajob to Coffs Harbour last week, but I couldn't go. Now I'm relieved. If it's hell for the normal motorist, it must be another place for the oversize.

Ron and Shirley · Senior Member

Cruising Granny wrote:
As a national highway it's very dangerous. This highway kills people. There's the broken surface up north, and the road is very narrow. There's no shoulder or verge beyond the fog line. If you are confronted by a vehicle out of control you can't take evasive action. Any evasive action would send you down a 5-10 metre shoulder.
If you've driven on NT, SA or WA roads you would understand how roads should be built. The Bruce is not it. In fact I've come to the conclusion the Qld doesn't know how to build a safe, adequate highway.
Once again I must ask, where are the tolls going?

CG

You have a clouded emotional thing about the Toll roads at present and really you need to let your fingers do the walking and learn about them.

The Tolls pay for the just that road, not other roads.

Companies like Transurban raise then spend billions building these roads because the State Governments cannot (what about fuel taxes?). In return they get a long term contract to operate these roads as a Tollway so as to recover their costs, return a profit for themselves, and their shareholders.

brickies · Guru

I think it great that a lot of people kept bagging Queensland and start staying away sure make it lot better for the locals , But for those who chose to kept coming and enjoy our great state you are most welcome

Sheba · Guru

tonyd wrote:
Ho hum, yet ANOTHER reason to avoid Queensland. Not that I needed one. There's so much to see in the rest of mainland, grown-up Australia.

Just think of Queensland's contributions to our nation: Bjelke-Petersen, Cane-toads.

Joh was a Kiwi, and Cane-toads were imported too.

Cheers,

Sheba.

bill12 · Guru

I can see that we have a shareholder for Transurban and the other multinationals in our midst.Oh, praise the lord , and pass the ammunition.I have a passing dislike for toll roads, and multinational companys who think they are the saviors of poor old slow aussies, especially Qlders.Toll road companys are in it to make a profit out of the taxpaying public, and are usually susidised by the public purse.I get the distinct impression that we are led to believe that they build toll roads out of the goodness of their collective multinational hearts. One toll road I traveled on had 76 speed cameras on it !Another money making addition. Bill

-- Edited by bill12 on Saturday 21st of July 2012 05:47:03 AM

Nicholstones · Guru

So now anyone who tries to inject a note of realism instead of constant 'its not fair they're all greedy' without any regard for the facts must be a shareholder (maybe capitalist running dog is what you're trying to say Bill). For a forum that prides itself on being open minded and respecting all points of view there seems to be pretty short shrift given to anyone who doesn't toe the party line in regards to the evils of governments, corporations, councils and caravan park owners.

Ron and Shirley · Senior Member

bill12 wrote:
I can see that we have a shareholder for Transurban and the other multinationals in our midst.Oh, praise the lord ,

Sorry to disappoint Bill, but you are way off the mark.
We have never had, or likely to have, shares in any Company.
The purse strings just never stretched that far.

Have to agree with Nicolstones post. Its becoming a little tiresome/sad really.

bill12 · Guru

Sorry if I offended anyone, but I don,t think public infastructure(freeways, etc) should be owned by private,mostly overseas, companys.In the old days the govt used to build these roads, and, eventually, we got to use them for free.Now we just pay,and pay, for the foreseable future.It seems we are going the way of sell everything, like power , and all we see for it is rising prices, and they will keep rising. Bill

mr glassies · Guru

you should drive crikey way past the zoo on the sunny coast . i followed a 18 wheeler up past the sunny coast the other night and had a good discussion about the roads up nth he reckons hes got to straddle the centre line so he didnt bottom out on the mounds in the nth bound lane . yep our roads are bad but hey who voted in the clowns that wasted all our money building pipelines to no were . and the traveston dam bull sh*t they were doing test boring there and where down 800 mtrs and still in sand that would ov held a lot of water a .

I AUSTRALIANS ARNT HAPPY LETS DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT AND DO IT NOW

imo dibs

Haji-Baba · Senior Member

I suppose if we had a double rail line to Townsville at least that might rid the B.H. of some heavy road transports.

What causes most of the road damage any way.

An extra line to N.Q. could reduce the truck numbers by nearly 3000 per day.

Yes we have to have road transport but not to the extent we have now.

It is all out of proportion and not necessary.

Happy travelling Haji-Baba

Two Strays · Senior Member

Hello All

Over the last three weeks the Navigator and I have have travelled the Bruce Hwy from Rockhampton to Innisfail. We found that there have been improvements to the Hwy since we were on it two years ago. If the amount of roadworks going on at present, it must improve a little over time.

We find the main problem on the Bruce Hwy is the inadequate distances of the overtaking lanes. They should be at least one kilometre long and also why do they finish just short of the crest of the hill. Bad planning decisions by the Main Roads Department. It is dangerous to all motorists.