In March 2021, Brisbane City Council (Council) stated that they were starting a pre-feasibility study to duplicate the Walter Taylor Bridge. This was confirmed in the 2021/22 budget, where Council committed $156,000 towards the study.
I was sceptical that this could be another wasteful Council project that doesn’t actually relieve congestion, so I obtained Council documents under RTI. They included modelling showing that duplicating the bridge would not improve traffic; in fact, it'd simply shift the bottleneck, creating 2 new congestion points at Westminster/Lambert Rd in Indooroopilly and another further south on Oxley Rd and Sherwood Rd.
They also included current traffic studies that indicate the bridge is used primarily for local travel and does not play a significant role getting people to the CBD, which means improving local public and active transport would actually be far more effective.
After years of locals and I opposing the bridge duplication, in 2024 it slipped off the LNP Council’s agenda, and the State Government has refused to provide funding.
I’m glad this project’s off the table for now, but the LNP should still rule it out once and for all. Building more roads just means more people will drive - instead, I’m pushing for the State Government to reopen the Tennyson train line and invest in better buses and bike lanes in Sherwood and Corinda.
Documents obtained via RTI:
Chelmer to Indooroopilly Strategic Modelling
Chelmer to Indooroopilly New River Crossing Pre-Feasibility Study - Scoping Document