KAP promise Port Douglas school crossing ‘within six months’
STATE ELECTION
KATTER'S Australia Party has promised to introduce a pedestrian crossing at the roundabout on Port Douglas Road if candidate Gordon Rasmussen is elected as Member for Cook.
Students from Port Douglas State School frequently cross the road at the intersection adjacent to the Wildlife Habitat before continuing along Ulysses Street, an area many believe has become increasingly dangerous.
Rasmussen and KAP’s Robbie Katter visited the site last week, the latter saying he was ‘absolutely astonished’ nothing had been done to fix the issue.
“If this was my electorate this would have been done three years ago,” Katter said.
“When Gordon Rasmussen is elected the member for Cook this will be fixed within six months. We will have the balance of power in a minority government and that is why we will achieve positive outcomes.”
KAP say the Labor and Liberal parties had failed to act on the issue going back as far as 2012. Extra signage was installed in the area in 2015, however it was ‘totally inadequate’ given the volume of traffic on Port Douglas Road during the busy morning and afternoon periods, according to KAP.
Rasmussen said the site required a marked pedestrian or controlled crossing, and possibly 40km zone during school arrival and finishing times.
The Department of Transport and Main Roads believe the area does not qualify for a crossing, school warning signage nor a stop-go traffic controller as the school is more than 200 metres away from Port Douglas Road.
That claim was ‘ridiculous’, according to Rasmussen.
“How ridiculous and inflexible are the regulations?” he said.
“When elected, this will be one of the first things I’ll tackle. I’ll be going straight to the minister for Transport and Roads and demanding action, if he doesn’t act I’ll go back and put it to him again and again.”
The Queensland election will be held this Saturday 25 November.
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