THE new traffic lights are up and running outside the Beerwah State School at the intersection of Kilcoy-Beerwah Road (locally known as Peachester Road) and Old Gympie Road.
Member for Caloundra Jason Hunt said he was pleased to deliver on his election commitment to upgrade the busy intersection.
“Upgrading this intersection was a priority for the Beerwah community and the travelling public,” Mr Hunt said.
“It not only enhances safety for all road users, it also increases traffic capacity and flow.
“Before construction, the intersection often experienced delays during drop-off and pick-up periods at the Beerwah State School.”
Next on the agenda is resurfacing a 1.5km stretch on Peachester Road from Old Gympie Road to Blackbutt Street, which will start in the coming weeks.
Mr Hunt thanked the community and key stakeholders for their patience during construction.
“I especially thank the Beerwah State School community for their ongoing patience and cooperation while this important intersection upgrade was undertaken,” he said.
GC&M News asked our Facebook community if they thought the changes had made a difference. The majority response was a resounding “yes”, qualified with “about time” or “it took a long time”.
Judy Allen commented: “Hoo-bloody-ray! It’s about time! So tired of taking up to 12 minutes to get across there!” in reference to the extended wait times during peak hour.
Some thought a roundabout would have been preferred and others think the light change timings need to be improved.
“At long last! Need to be letting more than about three cars through at a time though,” commented Francis Mary Nicholls.
Before the changes, the road crossing required a crossing supervisor for the children to safely cross. Now there are crossing lights some felt sorry that the “lollipop lady” may be out of a job.
However, others commented that she was still there helping the kids cross safely at the lights.
One major concern is a large bump in the road at the end of the roadworks on the Beerwah side of the intersection.
“Hope they sort out the speed bump just before the left turn into Old Gympie Road from Beerwah township,” Sarah Stout said.
“Lights are good but what about the difference in road levels??? It’s like hitting a pothole coming from town,” Rachel Verkade echoed.
When asked about the bump, Mr Hunt said that this would be sorted out soon.
“We still have to smooth out some bumps with some last minute re-surfacing and mark out some bike lanes,” he said.
“But it’s up and running and already delivering a safer intersection for motor vehicles and, perhaps more importantly, the students of Beerwah State School.”