Work continues on vital transport routes the Captain Cook, Gillies and Palmerston Highways as well as the Kuranda Range section of the Kennedy Highway in Far North Queensland.
These are used by hundreds of trucks daily and each was severely damaged after Cyclone Jasper devastated the region in late 2023 and were all closed for some time.
They are important links for travel between Cairns and the Atherton Tablelands, Port Douglas, Mossman and further north.
After numerous enquiries from truck drivers about the progress of work, I drove the Captain Cook, Gillies and Kuranda Range roads in June.
Along the way there was a lot of roadworks causing delays.
The 70km long Captain Cook Highway is from the outskirts of Cairns to Mossman, the 15km long Kuranda Range road is from Cairns to near Kuranda, whilst the Gillies runs from the Atherton Tablelands to near Gordonvale and has 263 corners, and 800 metres elevation change in only 19km.
The Palmerston runs from just north of Innisfail to scenic Millaa Millaa on the Atherton tablelands.
I drove all four in June of 2026 and found work being carried out on them with speed restrictions and night closures on the winding 15km Kuranda Range.
A Queensland Transport and Main Roads Department said significant progress had been made on repairing these roads damaged by Tropical Cyclone Jasper and severe weather events in the north and far north in early 2025.
Kuranda Range Road
Kuranda Range Road was severely damaged and of the 32 sites identified for repair work, 25 has been completed.
Current work is on four downslope sites including an 11-metre high slip below Henry Ross Lookout.
Work will start on three more sites later in 2026 depending on weather.
Ten sites were sites identified for repair from the north and far north tropical low in February 2025
Two of these sites have had work completed with another two being repaired now.
“The majority of work is expected to be completed by the end of 2026, however, some repairs including those to sites damaged in the February 2025 event will take longer and be completed in early 2027, site and weather conditions permitting,” the TMR spokesman said.
Captain Cook Highway
Of 85 geotechnical sites identified to be repaired along the Captain Cook Highway, 42 have been completed.
A total of 95 civil sites (unblocking culverts, reinstating guardrail and road furniture, table drains) and 70 pavement sites are still to be repaired.
Including four geotechnical sites identified from the February 2025 event.
“Most of the works will be completed by early 2027, site and weather conditions permitting, however some may take longer due to the severity of damage,” the TMR spokesman said.
Gillies Range Road
Along the winding Gillies Range Road, 23 sites were identified for repair and work on three landslips is completed.
“Work is ongoing at five sites, with the remainder of the works targeted to be completed by mid-2027, site and weather conditions permitting,” the spokesperson said.
The spokesman said work started in early 2026 to allow significant progress to be reached on restoring Kuranda Range Road and Palmerston Highway, both key range roads, to minimise traffic disruptions and ensure safe, reliable access for road users across the region.
“Two significant landslips have been stabilised on the Palmerston Highway, a key freight route in the region, while damaged sites on the Bruce Highway, Gulf Developmental Road and Tully Mission Beach Road have been repaired,” the spokesperson said.
The recovery works are jointly funded by the Australian and Queensland governments through the Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements.