Last week, two men aged, 21 and 72 fought for their lives following a devastating multi-vehicle collision on the Bruce Highway near Bloomsbury and the road was subsequently closed in both directions.
The Bloomsbury accident, alongside other crashes, including the devastating Greyhound Bus Incident near Gumlu, has opened up discussions surrounding the quality of road on the Bruce Highway.
The section of the Bruce Highway that runs through Dawson, from Mackay up into Townsville, has been identified as one of the most dangerous sections of the entire highway, and the worst has been identified as the 100km stretch between Bowen and Home Hill.
The Bruce highway has seen 761 crashes over 13 years and Between 2018 and 2022, 149 people lost their lives in 129 separate fatal crashes on the Bruce Highway. Of those, 54% (81 fatalities) were head-on collisions and almost 80% (118 fatalities) occurred in 100-110km/h speed zones.
Andrew Wilcox MP, has added to discussions surrounding the Bruce Highway, saying that better funding is needed to facilitate much-needed upgrades that he believes would make the highway safer.
“To have absolutely no funding committed from the Labor government to the Dawson section of the Bruce Highway, the worst and most dangerous section of the entire highway is unacceptable.”
“The people have had enough, I’ve had enough.”
According to the The Australian Road Assessment Program (AusRAP) no part of the highway is rated 5 stars, and 45% is rated only 2 stars.
With many heavy vehicles using the Bruce Highway every day, struggles to keep up with the maintenance of the road are at the fore.
Andrew Wilcox MP has rallied for people to sign a petition called, ‘Back Our Bruce’ to improve the safety of those who live, work, and travel through the region.
The devastating scene of the Bloomsbury Crash
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