Word on the Street: With a $7.2 billion Bruce Highway upgrade announced, what else would you like government money to go towards in the Burdekin?

Ron: “When we get heavy downpours here drainage is a real issue. On New Year’s Day we got a big, heavy downpour all day, and across the road over there, there was a lot of water. Some parts of it were completely cut off. So definitely more drainage would be good. Outside of that, I'd like to see another bridge built or if it’s possible, widening the exisiting one. The current Burdekin bridge is showing its age and become inadequate with lots more trucks and wider loads. It’s not uncommon for many people to miss appointments or be late for work.”

Bella: “We need more advancements in healthcare here in this region. I think the Ayr hospital needs a CT machine so people can easily have CAT scans. These machines are crucial in modern medical diagnostics and are widely used in hospitals around the world. Having a CT machine would help a lot of people, as you'd be able to treat more people in Ayr, rather than having to send them up to Townsville or down to Mackay or Brisbane. That could result in better outcomes for patients, while also keeping them here locally with their family and friends.”

Kristian: “It’d have to be the drainage situation first, then probably better housing, but I don't know where a housing development would go. Somewhere where there's vacant land for the government to put houses on it as there's a lot of homeless people around here. But mainly I think the drainage, because the other side of the Bruce always floods, and from the post office down to the end of us at the Burdekin Motor Inn, there's only one drain which holds all that water, and it just backs up all the time. I think if they did that then a lot of people would start opening shops back up across the road. Oh, and something fun and interesting for the kids to go, like a new park with a better playground, or a water park. A free water park in Home Hill would be fantastic for kids in this area.”

John: “Well, the Bruce Highway definitely needs some attention with a bit of an upgrade. We’ve just driven on it to get here and there are some pretty bad potholes and broken pieces of road and stuff like that. It's something that the Bruce highway up and down this part of the coast would benefit from for sure. It's not in great condition. We’ve just come from Brissy, and the road from Brisbane to Gympie is fantastic. Double lane freeways, barriers, smooth roads, but the Bruce, well, that needs work. That would help people access the local areas and shops better here. It’d provide better infrastructure with all the transport that you need to get your goods in and out of the area, along with more tourists.”

Gladys: “Well, we're looking for a second bridge to handle the extra traffic and more trucks and their big, wide loads. But also when they're doing works on the bridge, or something's happened on the bridge like an accident, you know what, we're delayed on both sides of it. It gets to be annoying after a while. They’re always doing road works and even though most of the time they do try to them it at night on the bridge, still, you’ve got to plan your travels around that you know if you want to come over to here or vice versa. I thought I heard something about a second bridge, but I probably won't be here when that finally happens.”

Ron Clive (77). Photo: Mark T. Rasmussen

Bella Linton (18). Photo: Mark T. Rasmussen

Kristian Bellamy (50). Photo: Mark T. Rasmussen

John Hamilton (52). Photo: Mark T. Rasmussen

Gladys Sgarbossa (68). Photo: Mark T. Rasmussen

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