The growing number of trucks in Mackay and insufficient adequate rest areas for truck drivers in the region are increasing the dangers on the road, according to a Queensland road safety group.

The Road Accident Action Group (RAAG) is pushing for a new multi-use rest area to be built in the suburb of Paget on a block of vacant land opposite the existing BP lorry stop. RAAG said there are currently no designated HGV parking spaces in Mackay and BP Paget is literally full of trucks, leaving drivers with no option but to park on the surrounding streets.

“There are heavy vehicles parked on roads all over the Paget industrial area,” said RAAG’s Carol Single, who for the past two decades has raised concerns about the lack of heavy vehicle parking in the Mackay area. Recently, she says the group was informed that the police had to wake up drivers and ask them to move their heavy vehicles so that wide loads could pass through them.

“Every few days the Bruce Highway between Rockhampton and Townsville is closed due to an accident. It’s a continuous spiral. There is no place for HGV drivers to stop and rest properly; and nowhere for recreational vehicles and caravans to rest in Mackay as all caravan parks are full.”

The nearest HGV stop in the area that meets the requirements set by Austroads is at Waverley Creek, 160 kilometers south of Mackay. RAAG worked with other stakeholders for 13 years to finally see the construction of this rest area in 2013.

But Single said given the number of fatigue-related accidents between Rockhampton and north to Townsville, a new rest area at Paget was urgently needed.

RAAG is now calling on Mackay Regional Council, the state and federal governments to support their proposal to turn the vacant land in Paget into a multi-use rest area with a minimum of 100 parking spaces for trucks, caravans and other road users.

As well as parking, RAAG proposes that the site will include a driver change facility for truck drivers, along with facilities for caravans and light vehicle drivers. “Currently the B doubles have to split up to be inspected at Mackay and we understand that the NHVR is looking for a new inspection station in the Mackay area,” Single added.

The suggested site for the rest area is located on Industroplex Drive, Paget.

“The beauty of this location, apart from being right across from BP, is that it is situated on the roundabout so it is in a perfect location for anyone coming from the north or south of the Bruce Hwy. It also links to the Mackay Ring Road and will link to the Walkerston Bypass, which will open later this year, and the Peak Downs Freeway, which will become the B-twin route to Mackay from the west.”

With the completion of the new Eton Range Road, Single said larger capacity vehicles coming from the west must turn off somewhere near Paget as the nearest breakdown platform is more than 40 kilometers west at Hazledean.

Paget is a center for mining activity in Queensland and Mackay sees high volumes of heavy vehicle traffic. Single said the Mackay and Central Queensland areas were moving more loads than anywhere else in Australia.

Accidents on the Bruce and Peak Downs Highways are currently occurring at an alarming rate.

According to RACQ data, motorists using the Bruce Freeway are five times more likely to be injured or killed in a crash than those who drive on the main roads linking Sydney and Melbourne.

Head-on crashes currently account for around 50% of crashes on the Bruce Highway.

“This is a critical project for the well-being of all travelers coming through Mackay – from HGVs to RV and RV drivers to car drivers who need a place to stop and rest. I don’t think there is anything more important right now than building a proper rest area to help reduce the carnage.”

RAAG’s proposal for a new rest area at Paget has received overwhelming support, with the Australian Trucking Association (ATA), Queensland Trucking Association (QTA), NatRoad, RACQ, Queensland Police, state and federal ministers and Mackay Regional Council all backing the plan .

The group will continue to push for a new rest area by seeking funding from the federal government’s Heavy Vehicle Rest Areas Initiative, which has committed $140 million to the construction of heavy vehicle rest areas over the next 10 years .

“We have a lot of support,” Single said. “We are now really trying to drive this and bring everyone together to progress the urgent need to build a rest area in Paget as soon as possible.”