Motorists looking to travel between the North Burnett locations of Byrnestown and Biggenden may need to plan for delays over the coming weeks, as a bridge maintenance project will force closures to a vital road in the journey.
The Queensland Department of Transport and Infrastructure has announced it will be closing Deep Creek Bridge on Gooroolba Biggenden Road from 28 January to carry out maintenance works to the watercourse crossing.
The single-lane bridge will be blocked off between 6am and 6pm Monday to Friday as TMR crews replace the structure’s inner timber girders, with changed speed limits put in place to allow for safe crossing after hours.
A spokesperson for the Department said the works will “keep the bridge safe and operational.”
The State Government estimates the repairs to take approximately two weeks, weather permitting.
Motorists will in the meantime have to find a way to circumvent Gooroolba Biggenden Road, which crosses through the localities of Didcot and Degilbo.
The road is the only access point to the heritage-listed Chowey Bridge railway crossing, another structure passing over Deep Creek.
TMR have provided a detour for motorists looking to travel between Byrnestown and Biggenden, advising drivers to take the Burnett Highway to Ban Ban Springs followed by the Isis Highway through Coalstoun Lakes instead.
The detour adds an additional 21.7 kilometres to the journey, resulting in approximately 10 minutes of added travel time.
TMR advised people living close to the maintenance works that heavy machinery used in the project will likely kick up dust and make noise.
Deep Creek Bridge already received extensive repairs from TMR at the end of 2024.
A spokesperson for the Department explained workers replaced the structure’s wearing surface and planks in late November to early December last year.
They said that, during that project, crews detected issues with the bridge’s timber structure, which is now being replaced in the January works.
TMR could not give an estimate of the expenses involved in carrying out the repairs, stating the project was part of an “existing maintenance contract” whose costs have not yet been confirmed.
