“Pull Your Finger Out and Give Us a Fair Go”: Sunshine Coast Top Place toRelocate Yet Falling Behind on Road and Rail Infrastructure

An irate local MP has called on the Federal and State Labor Governments to “pull their finger out” and give the Sunshine Coast a fair go when it comes to delivering road and rail infrastructure, after recent data showed the region remains the number one destination for Australians relocating intra- or inter-state – for the seventh consecutive quarter.

Long-term local, Mr Wallace, who previously served as Chair of Federal Parliament’s Infrastructure, Transport and Cities Standing Committee, pointed to a number of local funding cuts, cancellations, and project delays as evidence of a pattern of poor performance and “a catalogue of broken promises”. He is demanding greater investment and attention on the fast-growing and underserved Sunshine Coast community.

“First, Labor stripped $160 million from the Mooloolah River Interchange – one of the country’s worst intersections – after forcing hundreds of locals to relocate in the midst of a housing crisis,” Mr Wallace said.

“Then they cut $7 million from the Caloundra Transport Corridor after a drawn-out consultation - upgrades which would have eased pressure on Caloundra Road and Nicklin Way roundabout and the Caloundra community,” Mr Wallace continued.

“Now taxpayers are paying double the price for a third of the project when it comes to Sunshine Coast Rail, stopping at Caloundra, rather than Maroochydore in another Labor stuff-up,” Mr Wallace added, continuing, “Lives, livelihoods, and countless opportunities continue to be lost thanks to Labor’s broken promises and utter incompetence.”

These decisions come on the back of careless cuts to the Bruce Highway; years of delays in the North Coast Rail Duplication; and a stalled Southern Sunshine Coast Roads Improvement Study.

Mr Wallace concluded, “I won’t stop until this long-awaited project which State Labor has dithered and delayed for years on, is delivered all the way to Maroochydore City Centre. It should be done by 2032. We just need Labor to get on board or get out of the way. Sunshine Coast locals expect nothing less.”

The Regional Australia Institute’s – Regional Movers Index showed that to the end of June 2024, 14.1% of internal migration was to the Sunshine Coast Local Government Area, in a growing exodus from expensive cities to regional communities. This was a nearly 10% more than the Gold Coast and nearly double the next most popular destination – Geelong.

Find out more at www.regionalaustralia.org.au.