General News
16 December, 2025
Folk seeing red over lights
BABINDA residents have been left baffled and annoyed by a revelation that the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) is proceeding with a plan to install a signalised pedestrian crossing on the Bruce Highway at the intersection with Munro Street.
What started about seven years ago as a full upgrade to the intersection, including four-way traffic lights on the highway and on Munro Street, has now ended up with the issuing of a tender to only install the signalised highway pedestrian crossing, but no other traffic lights or signals.
A newsletter published by Babinda Taskforce quotes the TMR saying that the intersection upgrade “will now proceed with a revised scope” focusing on a signalised pedestrian crossing, “rather than full intersection signalisation.”
This means highway traffic will be brought to a standstill when the pedestrian crossing is activated, but there would no other lights directing traffic out onto the highway or signals for turning in.
TMR confirmed the pedestrian-only system.
“Once activated by a pedestrian or cyclist, the pedestrian signals will stop Bruce Highway traffic to provide a safe crossing for vulnerable road users,” a TMR spokeswoman said.
“Vehicles turning in and out of Munro Street will continue to rely on stop and give-way controls,” she said.
Rodney Edwards, a former business chamber president who spoke out many times over the years against previous plans for the intersection upgrade previously costed above $7 million, says a signalised crossing is still not needed.
He says there is already a pedestrian island complete with safety fencing in the middle of the highway to the north of Munro St which works well.
“Pedestrians crossing the highway were unsafe when the speed limit was 80km/h, but now that it is 60, a snail in a wheelchair would feel safe crossing,” Mr Edwards said.
“It takes much less than 10 seconds to cross the one lane to the safe island in the middle and takes over 20 seconds for vehicles approaching, giving the pedestrian more than ample time to cross safely,” he said.
TMR says the highway pedestrian crossing plan came about after local input.
“Community consultation undertaken during the project’s planning stage highlighted pedestrian and cyclist safety as a top priority among locals,” the spokeswoman said.
But Mr Edwards has questioned whether any proper consultation was conducted at any stage of the intersection upgrade planning.
“Babinda pedestrian crossing public consultation can’t be taken seriously as it was held after the electrical conduits were installed, which suggests that traffic lights were already a forgone conclusion and the notion that pedestrian safety was highlighted is highly dubious,” he said.
Another community member who has been very vocal about previous intersection upgrade plans, Chris Wiles, is even more cynical now about TMR’s response to its latest plan.
“In other words, (TMR is saying) we don’t have the integrity nor gumption to retire a demonstrably idiotic plan and will forge ahead with an even more ridiculous solution to a non-existent problem,’” Mr Wiles said.
“The result will be we can rest on unearned laurels knowing we used words including ‘vulnerable’,” he said.
“The ‘consultation’ is a fabrication as far as I can tell.”
Trevor Crawford said it was “a risky upgrade”. “Has there been any community consultation including local police?”
“Aren’t the kids going to have a field day with the button for the crossing,” said Brian James.
Tenders close in mid-December, with construction expected to start in early 2026.
