The Helen’s Hill heavy vehicle rest area on the Bruce Highway will be closed until March 31, advises the Department of Transport and Main Roads in Queensland.
A notice from the heavy vehicles unit today said works are being undertaken to upgrade entrance and exit points, and widen the parking areas at the rest area located about 17km south of Ingham.
“These works will improve road safety for heavy vehicles accessing the rest area and for motorists travelling along this section of the Bruce Highway,” the notice added.
To provide heavy vehicle drivers with real-time information about rest area availability, Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) technologies will also be installed on site, a TMR spokesperson told Big Rigs.
Advanced warning signs will alert heavy vehicle drivers of parking availability on the road side, approximately 5km out from the rest area. This will allow heavy vehicle drivers to effectively manage their fatigue by planning their journey and use rest areas as a safe place to stop, said the TMR.
Automatic number plate recognition cameras will be used to monitor vehicles entering and exiting the rest area.
“We will also collate information about the types of heavy vehicles using the rest area including how long they are staying.
“We will use the information gathered from this trial to analyse rest area usage and make improvements.”
The other sites taking part in the trial are at Ogmorem, Gin Gin, Miriam Vale, Waverly Creek and Christmas Creek.
The Helen’s Hill rest area was closed from November 11 to December 3 last year to set up the site and start works, however wet weather caused some delays, the spokesperson added.
It was re-opened for the busy Christmas and New Year period and closed once again on January 13.
Alternative vehicle rest areas are located at:
- Christmas Creek heavy vehicle rest area, about 47km north of Townsville.
- Rollingstone inspection and weigh pad site, about 65km north of Townsville.
The TMR also reminded truckies to download the free RestSpace app, where you can find, rate and add rest areas across the state.
RestSpace features a database of about 2000 Queensland rest stops and a GPS routable base map.
Other features of the app include:
- GPS co-ordinates to locate specific rest areas, which can be used in external GPS devices.
- An estimated time of arrival to rest areas.
- Filtered search capability for particular rest areas based on amenities.
- Bookmarking capability to save favourite rest stops.
- Reviews and ratings about rest areas for other heavy vehicle users.
- Driver feedback for users to suggest improvements to the quality and accuracy of information available about the rest areas.