Roads – Gladstone Regional Council

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Road safety measures in Gladstone - a collective responsibility
Level of service rating
Public access road register
Roadworks and temporary closures
Permanent road closures
Works on Roads
Gates and Grids

Council plans, constructs and maintains roads, drains, footpaths and other public infrastructure throughout the region. The Gladstone Region incorporates 390km of asphalt streets and roads, 560km of bitumen seal roads and a total of 1448km of gravel roads.

Council has direct responsibility for the maintenance of its road network however the Department of Transport and Main Roads is responsible for several roads that pass through the region. In other instances, Council constructs roads on behalf of the Department of Transport and Main Roads.

Capital funding is allocated each year to try and meet the asphalt overlay and bitumen reseal requirements. Road reconstruction and upgrades are required at times due to the road reaching its designed life. Roads are assessed on condition and predicted traffic increases and then prioritised for future capital works programs.

Council’s roads are allocated to a southern, western and central region. Throughout the region, asset inspectors continually inspect roads, footpaths, car parks, drainage structures, bridges, boat ramps and jetties. The workforce consists of a combination of crews to deal with reactive and programmed maintenance and capital works. Reactive road maintenance involves response to repairs created by unexpected events such as car accidents and weather damage.

Road safety measures in Gladstone - a collective responsibility

We’re taking significant steps to enhance road safety within work zones. Recently, Council installed speed indicators onsite and unveiled a concerning trend: motorists are averaging a risky 52 km/h in 40 km/h zones. We urge all road users to prioritise safety and obey signed speed limits, ensuring the well-being of our dedicated council workers and the wider community.

By adhering to speed limits and staying alert to site signage, we can collectively protect the lives of council workers who are improving our infrastructure. Remember, a single moment of distraction or recklessness can have life-altering consequences. Let's safeguard our roads and ensure the safe return of our workers to their loved ones each night.

Join us in making road safety everyone's responsibility. Together, we can create safer and accessible roads for our community. Don't forget, disregarding traffic rules in work zones carries penalties. Be cautious, obey speed limits, and prioritise the well-being of our council workers. Stay informed, stay alert, and drive responsibly in Gladstone!

Level of service rating

Each road within the region has an assigned hierarchy and is categorised on a scale according to its design and purpose.
This determines inspection requirements, including a schedule of when roads should be inspected and criteria for maintenance.

Levels of service (road maintenance) Roads and streets operational schedule Maintenance Guideline (Replaces Part 3 of 3)

Sealed roads and carparks
Footpaths
Kerbs, medians and channels
Road drainage
Underground stormwater
Open drains.

Public access road register

Council register of public access roads as per section 74 of the Local Government Act 2009 (Qld)

View register

Roadworks and temporary closures

To enhance Council's preparedness for disaster events, several cameras have been installed in the southern part of the region where flooding often occurs, closing roads for extended periods of time.

For information on road closures, visit RegionWatch

Information available on RegionWatch includes:

Road Conditions
Weather Warnings
Power Outages
Emergency News
Mapping Information:
- Road Status
- Flood Cameras
- Evacuation Zones/Flooding Levels
Links to important sites and information.

Flooded roads Roadworks Public notices for Roadworks, closures and conditions

Permanent road closures

The following roads are closed permanently under section 69 of the Local Government Act 2009 (Qld):

Road reserve parallel to Venus Street, between Mercury Street and Capella Street, Telina. View map

Public notices for Roadworks, closures and conditions

Works on roads

Carrying out works on a road or interfering with a road or its operation requires a permit from Council this includes erecting temporary fencing, barricading and/or plant/material on road or footpath.
Types of works on roads are:

General works on roads including footpaths
Event, festival, march, parade, procession (open/occupy road or disrupt traffic flow)
Connect to Council stormwater drain
Gates and grids Installation.

To obtain a permit the applicant must complete an application to carry out works on a Council road form and submit to Council with the application fee. Application with payment must be submitted to Council a minimum of 21 business days prior to proposed commencement date of work. A copy of Council's standard conditions are available online.

Gates and grids

Council's Gates and Grids Policy ensures these assets meet appropriate safety standards and the responsibility for insurance, inspection, maintenance, repair and replacement is clearly defined and understood by landholders.

The policy applies to all gates and grids on Council maintained roads. The policy does not apply to gates and grids at property entrances, property boundaries, on boundaries of maintained roads that merge into an unmaintained road or where the gate or grid is not on a Council maintained road.

The Gates and Grids Subordinate Local Law was introduced to support Council’s policy, allowing landholders with existing gates or grids in maintained roads to decide if they would like to retain responsibility for their gate or grid, rather than transferring management of the structure to Council.

Gates and grids management options

Gates and Grids - maintained roads

Landholders with existing gates and grids in maintained roads are asked to nominate which management option they would like for existing gates and grids that they have an interest in. These options are:

Gates and grids can be transferred to Council; Council will insure, inspect, maintain and repair the gate or grid at Council’s cost with landholders to fund the replacement of the structures at the end of its useful life;
- Complete the Transfer of Responsibility for Gate or Grid to Council Form.
Landholders can obtain a transitionary approval up to 31 December 2024 for existing gates or grids in Council maintained roads which comes with the responsibility of insuring, inspecting, maintaining, repairing and replacing the structures at the landholder’s cost and indemnifying Council from all claims.
- Complete the Application for Existing Gate or Grid on a Formed Maintained Road to Receive an Approval under Transitionary Provisions of Subordinate Local Law No. 1.16 (Gates and Grids) 2023 Form.
- To help landholders fully consider this option an Example Approval is provided.
If the gate or grid is no longer required, request that Council remove it at Council’s cost.
- Complete the Request for Council to Remove Gate or Grid from Formed Maintained Road Form.

To help landholders with completing the Option Forms above, view the Gates and Grids Reference List that shows all gates and grids with their chainages and longitude and latitude coordinates.

Gates and Grids - unmaintained roads

Under the policy if you have a gate or grid that is in an unmaintained road (a road that Council does not currently maintain as part of its Road Maintenance Program) you do not need to elect one of the above options. The policy only requires that you maintain the structure in a safe and trafficable condition and that your public liability insurance covers these gates and grids in the event of an incident where the public has accessed an unmaintained road. More details about gates and grids in unmaintained roads can be reviewed in Council’s Policy– Section 6.5 and in the Gates and Grids Subordinate Local Law.

Require assistance or have questions?

For further information contact Council by visiting a Council Office or Rural Transaction Centre or by phone on (07) 4970 0700.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the 'useful' life of a grid?

Most grids that have been constructed to Australian Standards and/or built from appropriate materials and installed correctly generally have a design life of up to 50 years, provided that they are not heavily trafficked or been subjected to loads that exceed their carrying capacity.

What happens if I don’t return an option selection form for a gate or grid that I benefit from?

It is Council’s goal to have a responsible party assigned to each gate or grid in a maintained road by the end of 2024. Council is encouraging all landholders to be proactive and return forms as soon as possible to provide certainty for both landholders and for Council.
If there is no form returned for a gate or grid in the maintained road network, Council will first liaise with surrounding landholders. Where a responsible party cannot be identified from that process, Council options include:
- removing the structure commencing 2025 if there is not a responsible party identified; or
- accepting responsibility for the structure through to the end of its useful life and at the point of replacement, advise those that may benefit from the structure that if a responsible party cannot be identified, Council will remove the structure and not replace it.
What option Council selects will depend on the individual circumstance and will likely take into consideration the condition of the gate or grid, the level of use of the road and the associated risks and impacts for landholders and the travelling public.

If I have more than one gate or grid, do I need to select the same option for all of my gates and grids?

No, landholders can elect different options for different grids.

For example, if you have an older grid that may need replacing in the short term, you may want to retain responsibility for this structure which will allow you to apply to replace it yourself at the end of its useful life. Alternatively, if you have a relatively new grid that is unlikely to need replacing in the short term you may want to transfer it to Council management. It is entirely up to the landholder to elect which option that they consider is best for each structure.

In 2020 I submitted a form to transfer my grid to Council, do I need to fill out another form if I plan to continue with Option 1 – Council managed gate or grid?

Yes. We are asking all landholders with gates and grids in a maintained road to submit a form as we cannot assume that landholders will want to continue with a Council management option now that there is an alternative available.

Option 1 – Is there any annual cost from Council to Landholders for Council managing the gates and grids?

No, the only cost from Council to Landholders for Option 1 is at the point of replacement of the gate or grid. Landholders are responsible for Council costs in replacing the structures (if approval to replace is granted).

Option 1 - What are some key considerations related to this option?

Council will insure, inspect, maintain and repair the gate or grid at no cost to the landholder and Council will be responsible for any third-party claims in the event of an incident directly involving the gate or grid.
The gate or grid will be subject to Council’s intervention levels and priorities in relation to repairs and maintenance.
For example, you may consider your grid needs cleaning out and report it to Council, but if it does not meet Council’s intervention level for maintenance, maintenance may not be actioned n the timeframe you were anticipating. Maintenance will be actioned once the intervention level is reached, and where possible, scheduled as part of other works in the area.
Council will determine the end of useful life for the structures and landholders are responsible for the cost of replacing them with Council performing the work.
The last quotation prepared by Council to replace a 4-metre single lane grid was *$28,780, or for an 8-metre wide double lane grid *$55,664 (*this price is several years old and may change). This cost will be passed on to the landholder and will be payable as a lump sum payment or, under a payment plan, if required.

Option 2 - What are some key considerations related to this option?

Landholders can only apply for transitionary approval for existing gates and grids in Council maintained roads up to 31 December 2024. Once approval is granted, however, it is valid for the life of the grid.
The approval holder will be responsible for insuring, inspecting, maintaining and repairing the gate or grid and the landholder will also be responsible for any third-party claims in the event of an incident directly involving the gate or grid.
This option allows the landholder to perform the replacement (if approved) of a gate or grid which was installed prior to May 2023 at the end of its useful life at the landholder's cost rather than Council performing the work and the landholder reimbursing Council’s costs.
Replacement of the structure will however, require lodgement of an application to Council (a fee will apply) and the replacement structure must be constructed to Council’s standard and comply with any other Council imposed conditions.
Once a gate or grid has been replaced at the end of its useful life by the landholder the structure will then automatically transfer to Council management.

Option 2 – Is there an annual approval renewal cost to Landholders?

No, an approval for a gate or grid is for the life of the structure. Landholders will not have to renew their approval and there is no annual fee involved in holding an approval.

Option 2 – Do I need to submit a copy of my Public Liability Insurance Policy to Council annually?

No, the responsibility for securing appropriate public liability insurance rests with the approval holder. Council does not require a copy of the public liability insurance policy unless Council specifically requests a copy.

Option 2 - Am I allowed to work on Council Maintained Roads, particularly if I haven’t done any working in roads training?

The approval issued for gates and grids under Subordinate Local Law No. 1.16 (Gates and Grids) 2023 authorises the approval holder to carry out the required maintenance and repair of gates or grids and surrounds in accordance with the approval conditions.
All workers under Queensland’s Work Health and Safety Act and Regulation have an obligation to risk assess work before commencing. Then implement any site-specific controls that may be required to minimise risk. This approach should be applied to work performed under the approval.
One of the conditions of an approval will include the placement of temporary warning signs in accordance with the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices which provides the necessary safety advice for road users.
Landholders that consider as part of their risk assessment/safety plan, that formal training should be undertaken before they perform work associated with a Gates and Grids approval can elect to do so and this may provide a level of assurance in the event of any potential incident investigation.

Option 2 – Will Council require landholders to engage Registered Professional Engineers to provide a site specific report to fulfill approval conditions?

‘If required, provide a site-specific report about the structural integrity of the gate or the grid by an appropriately qualified persons as nominated by Council’ 
Council will be taking a practical approach to this condition. Many Registered Professional Engineers have advised that they generally will not provide a professional assessment of pre-existing grid structures for a number of reasons.
The site-specific report will require information that gives Council assurance that the grid is safe and trafficable for the level of traffic that it carries.

For example, Council may require the landholder to provide a report on how a grid is proposed to be repaired and seek a statement that the work will be undertaken by a person who is sufficiently qualified/competent and/or experienced in performing that work (such as welding work is required.)

What is the process for removing a gate or grid if I election Option 3? Are there costs for the landholder?

When the request form is submitted, Council will erect a notice on-site at the gate or grid approaches advising that it is proposed to be removed. Interested parties will be provided with 28 days to make a submission should they elect to do so.
At the end of the 28 day period, and subject to any submissions being considered and addressed, the gate or grid will be removed at Council’s expense and Council will restore the road surface. There are no costs to the landholder.
Should landholders elect to salvage the gate or grid after removal, the structure will be left in a safe location in the road reserve for the landholder to claim. Please note that Council cannot guarantee the condition of the structures after removal as it has found that some of the older grids may break up during removal. Where landholders elect not to salvage materials after removal, it will be disposed of by Council.

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Report all non-urgent gravel road repairs (corrugations/stones/ruts/dust) via Online Services

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Roads and infrastructure