Improve the rail trail

One good thing for our “very noisy minority” is Mayor Power has now finally put his pen to paper an acknowledged us in his MyCity Logan column (1-7 August).

I do hold hope from my brief discussion with Mayor Power that he will request the project team go back to their draft design and look at this suggestion which could allow the project to progress sooner and not require double the funding $7m to $13m that it needs already, let alone how much it would require by the end of 2024.

With the start pointing from Bethania Train Station, and all the logistics of going through Palm Lake Resort and crossing the busy road intersection between Albert St, Church Rd & High Rd making them all the most expensive sections, use the current existing footpath infrastructure that runs from the train station to Easterly and Dairy Creek Roads and simply line mark in a bikeway connection to those two roads.

There is an existing green painted bikeway line on both sides of the road marked on Glasson Drive off High Road, that currently doesn’t connect to anything or anywhere. 

A bikeway from the train station along High Road would provide connection to the 57 businesses on High Road, Pease Court, and Glasson Drive, as well to Canterbury College. 

There is the $2.5 million allocated from LNP government back in 2019 to the High Road/Easterly Street upgrade which is still at design phase with consultation ongoing.

Pedestrian footpaths are already in place for 99% of it.

A bikeway could be drawn on a map as a transport connection from the train station to the start of the rail trail.

It will also be more picturesque going this way past Canterbury College and through Woodland’s parklands, than running it behind a graffitied industrial shed and then through 1km of 1.8-metre-high wire mesh fencing through Palm Lake Resort.

Also, council has indicated starting the “horse” section of the trail at Dairy Creek Road because TMR already own land there that they could use to park horse floats. So why not make it that everyone parks there if coming by car. 

Mayor Power, you owe this review to all your ratepayers as many are feeling the full effects of these tough economic times and if monies had to be taken from council’s budget amendment for this rail trail to be completed.