MORE than 1400 people have signed a petition to fix a horror stretch of road between Mundubbera and Chinchilla which locals claim is damaging vehicles and forcing trucking companies onto alternative routes.
Darr Creek Oasis service station owner Peter Seiler began collecting signatures from his shop front along the damaged road on October 13 and intends to submit the petition to the Queensland Parliament.
His endeavours to have ‘bumpy’ and single lane sections of the road properly fixed and maintained is backed by the newly formed Mundubbera-to-Jandowae Roads Working Group which is chaired by AgForce South East Queensland regional director Georgie Somerset.
Mr Seiler’s shop mainly offers food and fuel but he is regularly forced to weld broken trailers and vehicles damaged on the road.
He said it had been decades since he could remember it being smooth and safe.
While some roadworks have been done, lack of area knowledge and water movements meant it lasted less than three months in some sections, Mr Seiler said.
“I know it’s difficult country this brigalow clay country but they do not put foundations underneath,” he said.
“Because it is melon hole country, you can’t see where (water) is going to block up unless you are a local and you know that knowledge.”
Mr Seiler spoke to a member of a Hunter Valley fishing group who drive an extra 200 to 300km to avoid the road.
Lindsay Transport in Mundubbera also bypass the area and send their trucks down the inland road through Esk.
Mundubbera Depot Assistant Manager 2IC Stephen Meyer said they liked to keep their drivers within phone range in case of a breakdown, which was limited on the affected road.
With Mundubbera a large horticulture region and feedlots in the area, the road could be a major connection to the Bundaberg port and Wellcamp airport.
The Roads Working Group is hoping to collect data surrounding the loss of profitability the road has caused local businesses via an online survey.
Historically, lobbying was done to have the road sealed due to it being a significant cattle road but group chair Georgie Somerset said there was now cattle and produce reliant on the north to south route.
She said AgForce also prioritised the affected road as one of five significant routes that needed funding across Queensland.
“Where the road is located means it is competing in priority with roads like Bunya Highway in terms of how funds are allocated,” she said.
“It affects this part of the community but unless you’re working inland, Burnett people haven't noticed the issue.
“The difference with this Road Working Group is up until now council have taken it on there own, we have seen an need for councils to work together.”
The Queensland Country Life contacted the South Burnett Council but they did not respond before our deadline.
To complete the survey visit www.biedo.org.au under the Survey tab.
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