How a new transport link will ease choking town's 'rat runs'

The wider benefits of a congestion-busting project planned for Caloundra have been revealed as traffic numbers continue to surge as more people choose to live on the Sunshine Coast.

Tens of thousands of locals and visitors are now grappling with a stop-start commute through the intersection of Caloundra Road, Nicklin Way and Pelican Waters Boulevard to access Caloundra’s CBD on a daily basis. 

This intersection, managed by Transport and Main Roads (TMR), is planned to be upgraded in the future, however prior to this upgrade, traffic volumes thorough the roundabout must be reduced by constructing the Caloundra Transport Corridor Upgrade (CTCU).

At the moment, the increasing pressure on the main roundabout, is forcing many motorists to seek alternative route ‘rat runs’ through once-quiet suburbs.

These include Moffat Beach, Dicky Beach and Currimundi, as well as Aroona and Caloundra West (Sugar Bag Road).

Sunshine Coast Council Division 2 Councillor Terry Landsberg said the $37.8 million CTCU, planned to run from Omrah Avenue to the Nicklin Way, was the next step to addressing one of the worst traffic snarls in our region.

“If you look at the recent drone footage over Caloundra you can see the main areas of congestion,’’ Cr Landsberg said.

“The town is choking due to bottlenecking and this has significant flow-on effects to other local roads that were never built to cater for the amount of traffic they are experiencing.

“However, the CTCU will reduce the number of vehicles travelling through the roundabout and on various roads by an estimated 20 per cent – that’s a real win for our beachside communities.”

State Member for Caloundra Jason Hunt praised the project’s progress.

“I’m very pleased to see real progress and genuine consultation going on around this project,’’ Mr Hunt said.

“Traffic congestion on Caloundra Rd is a significant issue in our community and this project combined with the Bells Creek Arterial Rd represents a genuine effort to address this problem.’’

A recent Sunshine Coast community survey – 2022 Living on the Sunshine Coast – provided insight into which liveability attributes matter the most, what needs to be maintained, what can be improved and how they feel their local area is currently delivering.

Environment and Liveability Portfolio Councillor Peter Cox said the community responses told council low road congestion was among the top five most important ‘liveability’ traits out of 16 attributes.

“When you narrow into the survey results, 48 per cent of Caloundra respondents, including the catchment area from Pelican Waters in the south, Little Mountain in the west to Currimundi in the north, said easing road congestion was important in making somewhere a good place to live,” Cr Cox said.

“Along with providing an additional vehicle route into the CBD, the CTCU design focuses on vastly improving safety and accessibility for walkers and cyclists with new signalised crossings, pedestrian pathways and a dedicated 1.6 kilometre two-way cycle track for all levels of cyclists.

“The new facilities adjacent to a low-speed traffic environment – typically 50km/h – encourage active transport in the area, which we know returns several health, environmental and economic benefits.

“If we don’t plan for our future and start delivering infrastructure to cater for our growing population, then we are not standing by our ethos of being a sustainable region and we are setting the next generation up for failure.”

Increasing traffic on beachside suburb streets

Roundabout on Caloundra Road and Nicklin Way

Cr Terry Landsberg said the CTCU would also help attract business into the CBD as part of the Caloundra Centre Activation Plan.

“This project includes a district level library with community spaces, the Community and Creative Hub connecting The Events Centre, a proposed new Regional Gallery, and new town square through to Bulcock Beach,” Cr Landsberg said

“It’s important the Sunshine Coast has a sustainable community, a sustainable environment and a sustainable economy – and I hope by working with the community and the recently formed Stakeholder Interest Group we can have a shared vision of a sustainable and liveable future.”

A Stakeholder Interest Group, comprising a panel of 10 community representatives, has been announced by the Queensland Government and will work with the CTCU Project team during the detailed design process.

The project is being funded by Sunshine Coast Council, the Australian Government and Queensland Government. Section one is being delivered by SCC while section two is being delivered by TMR. 

The Queensland Government is contributing $7 million to the $18.2 million cost of section two from TMR’s State Road Network Upgrades program.

For more information about the project, including a video showing the extent of traffic congestion in Caloundra,  please visit Council’s Caloundra Transport Corridor Upgrade webpage. To receive project updates please register your contact details by clicking here.

Click to register for Caloundra Transport Corridor updates

Aerial photos at roundabout on Caloundra Road and Nicklin Way. Picture: Patrick Woods.

Roundabout on Caloundra Road and Nicklin Way. Picture: Patrick Woods.

FORECAST KEY BENEFITS:

• Traffic congestion forecast to reduce on Sugar Bag Road, Queen Street, Elizabeth Street, Buccleugh Street, eastern end of Caloundra Road, western end of Bowman Road and western end of Bulcock Street after CTCU opens.
• Once completed, the CTCU is forecast to reduce traffic volumes by around 20 per cent at the Caloundra Road, Nicklin Way and Pelican Waters Boulevard intersection and on various local roads including reducing the amount of traffic flow through our beachside suburbs of Dicky and Moffat Beach. 
• CTCU provides new access from Industrial Avenue and Third Avenue to Nicklin Way for walking, cycling and driving, which will greatly reduce the number of heavy vehicles entering the already congested Caloundra Road.
• Once completed, the CTCU will deliver infrastructure to cater for our growing population and tourism.
• TMR can progress to upgrade Caloundra Road, Nicklin Way and Pelican Waters Boulevard intersection including walk and cycle crossings, after the CTCU is completed. TMR planning supports the CTCU including the Third Avenue extension to be completed first.
• Planning for alternative access has allowed streetscaping on Bulcock Street to be undertaken.

The CTCU will provided dedicated active transport connections for pedestrians and cyclists and continue to align with the Sunshine Coast Integrated Transport Strategy of responsible land use and transport integration to reduce trip lengths and increase viability of active and passenger transport.