General News
23 June, 2026
Beaches road safety worries
TRINITY Park residents are calling on Cairns Regional Council to improve pedestrian safety near local schools, saying children are being forced to cross busy roads without designated crossings during peak traffic periods.
Local resident Greg Tate said concerns had been raised with councillors about safety issues on Reed Road, Smithfield Village Drive and Navigation Drive, but residents were still waiting for a community meeting to discuss the matter.
“We’ve contacted councillors in Division 8 and 9 regarding the safety issues on Reed Road, Smithfield Village Drive and Navigation Drive. There’s no pedestrian crossing and kids are just running through traffic at school times to get through to Holy Cross School or Smithfield State High School,” Mr Tate said.
“Even me as a resident, there’s no way of crossing those roads safely at that time of the morning when the traffic is at its peak.”
Mr Tate said residents had requested a community meeting with Mayor Amy Eden, Division 7 Councillor Brett Olds and Division 8 Councillor Rhonda Coghlan to discuss potential solutions.
According to correspondence provided by Mr Tate, Cr Coghlan responded on 24 May saying council representatives would work towards arranging a suitable meeting date.
“Thanks for your contact. We will get together and come up with a suitable time/date,” Cr Coghlan wrote.
“I do know each of us have several weekly and monthly commitments with various community groups, P&Cs and sporting groups on both weekdays and Saturday. It will be a matter of working out a time that suits all.
“We will come back to you on this.”
Mr Tate said residents were still awaiting confirmation of a meeting.
“We asked them for a community meeting in June and we’re still waiting to hear and that was three weeks ago,” he said.
Residents are seeking pedestrian crossings on Navigation Drive, Reed Road and Smithfield Village Drive, as well as upgrades to median strips in the area.
“All we are asking from residents of Trinity Park and beach is that safety crossings be provided so that school children and residents can cross safely in the peak school hour times and that the median strips in the area be upgraded,” Mr Tate said.
“We’ve even asked them to upgrade the median strips, which haven’t been done for 20 years,” he said.
Mr Tate said residents believed traffic pressures would continue to increase as the area grew.
The group continues to seek a meeting with council representatives and is calling for infrastructure upgrades to improve safety for school students, pedestrians and residents.
Council has acknowledged residents’ concerns about pedestrian safety around Reed Road, Navigation Drive and Smithfield Village Drive, particularly during busy school drop-off and pick-up periods.
The connection of Navigation Drive to Reed Road was delivered as part of a staged infrastructure program.
While pedestrian crossing facilities at the Reed Road intersections are not yet complete, a council spokeswoman said an accessible pedestrian median crossing had been designed for the south-western approach of the Reed Road intersection, with construction scheduled in the 2026-27 financial year.
The council spokeswoman said it was also working with local schools to identify measures to improve traffic flow, school access and safety outcomes. It welcomes feedback from residents and said community concerns would continue to be considered as part of ongoing planning and assessment processes.
