Question. The Highway from Gympie to Rocky.

[odes20]

Yesterday I drove this highway on my long journey home back to Cairns. Saw quite a few boats, big and small, amongst the mainly patient holiday travellers. I also now appreciate when I read Offshore reports, how far you blokes in the south travel to get to places like Agnes Waters, to head out.

My question is what on earth are all those 90km and even 80 km zones imposed for? They are all on largely great stretches of wide sealed road?? The only thing I could see achieved is unnecessarily slowing the whole transport process for everyone. Just laborious crawling like cockroaches along the road, and some of these poor pedantic travellers always slow down to 10kms an hour slower than the imposed 90 or 80 and now we are really regulated!
How it could reduce crashes is beyond me. I actually saw 2 road events , one a single vehicle accident, that had just occurred. It was one of those Jolly Frog Taragos loaded with tourists who went sideways into a tree and totally demolished the car. Occupants were sitting out on the roadside beiing attended to,and I hope no one was killed. Happened on a perfectly straight wide road. Either blew a tyre, or went to sleep, judging by the tyre mark on the road. The other event was a moron who suddenly in the thick of traffic hits other picks to pull over, and the concertina effect nearly trapped five cars.
Anyway, you get on the road north of Rocky, and HELLO! 110kms nearly all the way to Mackay and traffic flowing smoothly!!

I'm confused, frustrated.

[upstart]

Mate i did the same drive yesterday. Gold Coast through to Townsville. We also saw the Juicy camper which smashed into the tree. Those backpackers were so lucky! But I agree, it did seem a little slow through there. At least there are plenty of overtaking lanes around there though.
We also got forced off the road twice by southbound idiots overtaking when it wasn't safe. More overtaking lanes are desperately needed north from Rocky.

[fat-buoy]

I was lucky enough to work in a section which dealt with car crashes etc a while back and I was amazed at how many people including the media jump on the band wagon and blame the road for their crashes... when everything comes out in the wash it is usually the driver error, poor vehicle maintenance (read as bald arse tyres), speed, drink driving etc etc etc that was the major cause of the crashes.... bottom line was that everyone wants to make a song and dance about how dangerous the road is and viola the speed limit has to be reduced and a whole range of safety measures introduced at great cost to try to build a better road ...... only to find that the just build a better idiot and the same shite goes on!

It is very frustrating to those of us who drive to conditions and are competent behind the wheel to have the same rules imposed but there you go

[Schulzy]

Came back from Miriam vale on Christmas Day. Had a bloke overtake me and another car up a hill on double lines. It is just stupid when over the hill was safe to overtake. Just doesn't make sense.

[astro66]

It takes 5 hours from tannum sands to the sunny coast now.....used to be able to do it in 4 ish ...
i only use the coast way as a last resort...its quicker to get to rocky the back way though killkivan....to work in dysart is 8 1/2 the back way....10 the coast way.....

[randell]

There are a lot of accidents along this road......
I think people get tired or distracted, and bang. You get sick of reading about accidents in the paper.

randell

[odes20]

The facts about accidents on this road maybe established, but to slow the traffic so much only adds to congestion in my view, which can give place to frustration and stupid actions as mentioned.
Interesting how in Europe the speeds aloud are way higher, and their accident percentage is not higher than here.
On another note which may seem contentious, a lot of police don't actually believe that speeds above that designated for a section of road are dangerous and kill, as I see police exceeding the speed limits all the time, in police vehicles! I followed a police radar van into Cairns recently which broke all speed limits on that road, and when I pulled up along side him at th,e lights, there is that big sign on the side which says, "Every K over is a Killer"
I'm not one who disrespects police and their role in community, it just show how daft the whole system is, when police themselves find it hard to abide by the rules. If they pull you over they are doing so because you are deemed to be a menace of the road, but they can't live inside the rules themselves.
My rant is just to say that I don't think it's speed that kills.

[Eug]

What are people's thoughts on taking the inland route? We're heading up to Lucinda/Cardwell in Feb (from Brisbane) and was wondering it'd be a little more easy going despite the extra kilometers through Emerald, etc.

[pescados]

My rant is just to say that I don't think it's speed that kills.

Agreed but the "NUTS " behind the wheel do.

[odes20]

What are people's thoughts on taking the inland route? We're heading up to Lucinda/Cardwell in Feb (from Brisbane) and was wondering it'd be a little more easy going despite the extra kilometers through Emerald, etc.

Living in Cairns, I take that route all the time. Largely uninhabited, almost all that route has great roads, so all in all, very little stop/start as to traffic, towns, and a lot is 110 km

[Bruce Micheal]

Eug

I drive from Brisbane to Mackay, Townsville etc on a very regular basis! This I have found is the least time consuming and "frustrating" route. No need to go to Emerald......(going backwards to go forward!!!) Head west along the Warrego to Miles. Take the Leichardt Hwy north through Taroom, Banana, Mt Morgan to Rocky (plenty of fuel stops, although try and avoid getting fuel in Miles. It would have to be the most expensive I've seen). From Rocky, stay on the Bruce Hwy all the way. It seems the Bruce Hwy from Rocky south to Brisbane is the problem!!! Only travelled that way on Christmas eve!......NEVER AGAIN!!!

[astro66]

i work in dysart/moranbah....drive up and back every 3 weeks...did 80k ks up and back last year and it is quicker to get to mackay up route 3 through bilo and west to dingo then up the development road and in to mackay ...saves an hour..
almost no road works or traffic...

[Eug]

Thanks boys appreciate it.

[Peter4]

Just drove to Mackay and back over Xmas. 11 hours easy driving from Brisbane to Mackay on 21 December with virtually no traffic (especially trucks and B-doubles) all the way through. Came home last weekend and experienced exactly the same thing.

All roadworks have been suspended until 7 January, go slow zones around suspeneded roadworks were only a minor inconvenience and roads were mostly OK with the usual crappy bits around Childers, Gin Gin and Miriam Vale...

Biggest dramas were impatient drivers and idiots that sit on 80kmh in 100kmh zones without letting built up traffic behind them go by...

[Black_Rat]

It won't bother the grey nomads towing vans or backpacker vans

Gotta agree the Rocky to Mackay stretch along the 110 kph area is a sweet drive.

I've done a few drives up and down that way and all the problems seem to be south of Rocky. Never had an incident heading north of Rocky

Must be those from SEQ !