THE QUEENSLAND Government says the $48m Mulgrave River bridge will be open to traffic in April 2009, nine months ahead of schedule.
The majority of the 480m-long bridge construction is complete and all deck units have been installed.
The new structure stands five metres higher than the existing bridge and is located on a better road alignment about 30m upstream from the original highway.
The government says the bridge was designed to upgrade the flood immunity to a medium closure time of 48 hours during a 50-year event, with an average annual closure time of less than 10 hours. The bridge is also intended to improve accessibility between Cairns and Townsville.
The state authority says focus is now on completing works on the approaches to the bridge.
Main Roads invites the public to attend an open day for the bridge on 5 April 2009 to walk across the structure and inspect the progress.
The construction is part of the Australian Government’s $348 million Accelerated Bruce Highway Upgrade Package.
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