A new 63-metre bridge on the Gore Highway is on track to open later in the year. It aims to reduce the chances of flood-related closures of this key freight route.
The new bridge, located at Wyaga Creek, is being built 1.44m higher than the old bridge.
It’s designed to improve flood immunity, traffic flow and safety on the Gore Highway, between Millmerran and Goondiwindi.
While a rest area on the north side of the bridge will also be reinstated once the new bridge is open.
“A flood study carried out in 2016 revealed the Gore Highway is closed between Westbrook and the Leichhardt Highway for an average of 56 hours per year,” said Federal Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Catherine King.
“The Wyaga Creek crossing at Kilbronae was the largest contributor to those closures at 44 hours.The great news is once the upgrade is complete, it will significantly reduce the average annual road closure time of the Gore Highway.”
The new structure includes 105 reinforced box culverts to replace the existing crossing over Wyaga Creek at Kilbronae.
The new bridge is being built next to the existing highway to minimise disruption to traffic during construction. When the bridge is complete the Gore Highway will be realigned, including pavement widening and rehabilitation works on the approaches, before the old crossing is demolished.