The Northern areas Council has engaged McMahon Services Australia, to undertake major upgrade works on the Pine Creek Bridge, north of Laura.

McMahons will start mobilising the site on 28 August 2023, with a complete road closure and traffic management plan to be enacted from 31 August 2023.  It is expected that the bridge and this section of the Appila-Laura Road will be closed to traffic until 31 March 2024.

The scope of the work will include:

• Widening the bridge deck from 6.4m to 7.0m to accommodate modern heavy vehicle traffic.
• Restoring the structural integrity of the Bridge and increase the load limit by increasing the bridge deck thickness.
• Demolition and restoration of the bridge segments supporting the barriers and associated headstock, deck wearing surface and a tieback assembly located at one end of the bridge.
• Blast cleaning and coating of existing steel beams that support the concrete bridge deck.
• Other minor concrete and repairs to the road surface of the bridge and approaches.

Vehicles will be able to access the current heavy vehicle bypass, which requires northbound traffic to turn east on to the Stone Hut-Caltowie Road and then north on to the Gladstone-Appila Road which then returns traffic to the Laura-Appila Road. This detour will involve approximately 7km of unsealed road. A detour via the Pine Creek / Pech Road will also be available.

See attached map for details.

Laura – Appila Bridge Upgarde TMP

Appila to Laura Detour TMP

Laura Appila Bridge Detour TMP