Quaid Road ‘illegal’ to access during Kuranda Range closures

##MP##

The State Member for Barron River has poured water on the possibility of opening up a private road during Kuranda Range closures.

Quaid Road, AKA Southedge Wangetti Road, connects the coast near Hartley’s Crocodile Adventures with the Mulligan Highway just outside Mareeba.

Motorists flocked to the route when a truck crash closed the Kennedy Highway’s Kuranda Range for almost six hours on Wednesday, less than a week after a State Government report found there was no need for an alternative to the range road.

While some drivers managed to get through, the gates were quickly closed to prevent further access.

##BA##

Member for Barron River, Craig Crawford, told Tropic Now the road is illegal to use because it was never built to specifications.

“The gates probably never should have been opened in the first place,” he said.

“My understanding is that the only people that have got access other than emergency services is the Quaid family.

“Anyone else who’s accessing it is doing it illegally.”

The history of the road dates back to the 1980s, when the Quaid family was proposing a new rural subdivision known as Southedge.

Mr Crawford says it was never officially approved.

“Back in the 80s there were agreements that were made between the government of the day and the family and they may have been more of a handshake agreement,” he said.

##PQ##

“TMR (Transport and Main Roads) will say the road was never built to specifications.

“Where we sit right now is as far as the Government can see it was an illegally built road that has not been built to the standards so if the Government was to take Quaid’s Road over, we would have to rebuild it and that would cost hundreds of millions.”

Mr Crawford said the thoroughfare is not seen as a viable alternative to the Kuranda Range because of its location.

“If we’re going to invest, is that the best place to put it?” he asked.

“It doesn’t exit or enter where we need it to.

“At the moment Main Roads is not prepared to look at it.”

Mr Crawford believes the best solution for Kuranda Range woes lies with designating the road as part of the Land Transportation Network, which would transfer responsibility of the road to the Federal Government.