Luke Howarth (Petrie, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise this morning with great news for the people of Carseldine: that the Lacey and Beams Road intersection will soon be upgraded. On 1 September last year, I called on the Brisbane City Council to make this intersection a priority and now, some six months later, I have been informed that the upgrade will go ahead. This is fantastic news and I would like to thank the local council and Ross McKinnon, a local resident who contacted me and helped me bring this to the attention of council.

I am pleased to also inform the people of North Lakes that the federal government has committed to an $84 million upgrade of the Boundary Road overpass and associated works. The traffic on Boundary Road in peak hour is such a nightmare that this is the single biggest road issue in North Lakes. I have been campaigning for an upgrade to Boundary Road since my election, which is why I strongly welcome the federal government's commitment to busting this congestion hot spot. But the $105 million upgrade cannot go ahead without a state Labor government contribution. I call on the government in Queensland to join with the federal coalition government in funding an upgrade to Boundary Road at North Lakes.

North Lakes, of course, is one of the fastest growing regions in Australia. It is home to the first Costco store in Queensland and there are plans for new cinemas at Westfield as well as an IKEA warehouse. Every week there are new small retail businesses and hospitality businesses opening that are family run and operated in North Lakes. But with more and more families and businesses moving into the area, the congestion on the Boundary Road overpass is wasting commuters' time and is slowing business productivity.

One of my constituents in North Lakes, a local lawyer, Michelle Lember, said she used to use Boundary Road but quickly stopped when she found the traffic was just getting so ridiculous. As Michelle explained to me, the Boundary Road overpass is a vital artery which connects Narangba and Dakabin to North Lakes and the Bruce Highway, so the repercussions of a blockage on Boundary Road are felt far and wide in the region. This means Michelle has to plan ahead and use alternative routes when travelling to meet with clients and to get to her workplace in Caboolture.

An upgrade is long overdue. The proposed plan is ready to go and it would see the Boundary Road highway overpass widened from two single lanes to six lanes. I thank the Deputy Prime Minister, Warren Truss, for coming up at the end of January to announce this plan. I thank him for the contribution. Now all we need to get this road moving and see it become reality is a contribution from the state Labor government.