Over $30 million to boost vital freight links in regional and remote North Queensland

The Albanese Government is making critical investments in North Queensland’s regional and remote roads infrastructure, creating jobs and supporting business growth in the process.

The government has unlocked $31.92 million to majority-fund vital upgrades to Dotswood Road, Myola Road, Winton-Jundah Road and Burketown-Normanton Road. 

The funding will deliver vital improvements to key feeder roads along the Flinders Highway, Landsborough Highway and Gregory Developmental Road.

The Australian Government will fund up to 80 per cent of project costs in partnership with Charters Towers Regional Council (Dotswood Road and Myola Road upgrades), Winton Shire Council (Winton-Jundah Road) and Carpentaria Shire Council (Burketown-Normanton Road). The councils will contribute the remaining funding.

Assistant Minister for Regional Development, Anthony Chisholm joined Carpentaria Shire Mayor, Jack Bawden in Normanton today to meet the team who are leading the construction works at Burketown-Normanton Road, which has already begun. 

Burketown-Normanton Road in North West Queensland will receive $16 million and is a key route for livestock and agricultural industries in the Carpentaria region. It also connects the remote communities of Karumba, Normanton, Burketown and Doomadgee.

The upgrades along this route will progressively seal 26.4 kilometres of the road, providing a more reliable road network for tourism and freight, support pastoral and agricultural ventures in the Southern Gulf Region, and improve connectivity for remote communities. Construction is expected to be completed in the first half of 2027.

Dotswood Road, which is a feeder road to the Flinders Highway between Townsville and Charters Towers, and Myola Road, which connects to the Gregory Development Road, are key routes for the livestock and agricultural industries. 

The upgrades on these routes are expected to reduce road closures, improve travel times and minimise wear and tear on freight vehicles. Construction on both projects is expected to begin shortly and be completed by late 2025.  

Winton-Jundah Road which is a feeder road to the Landsborough Highway and is a key route for the transport of gypsum and livestock, will undergo progressive sealing works and is expected to be completed by late 2026.

A breakdown of funding on all four projects is featured below and further information on the Infrastructure Investment Program, which is the source of the Australian Government’s funding contribution, can be found here.