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  • Bruce Highway (Gympie – Maryborough), Tiaro Bypass, construct bypass
  • Southern Queensland Region
  • Bruce Highway Upgrade Program
Location
Bruce Highway, Tiaro Queensland
Timing
Construction timeframes to be confirmed following contract award
Status
Procurement
A long queue of cars on a two lane road surrounded by trees and green spaces, approaching Tiaro, looking north toward the Tiaro Street intersection and town centre

Bruce Highway (Gympie – Maryborough), Tiaro Bypass, construct bypass

The Queensland Government is improving flood immunity, safety, and efficiency of the Bruce Highway and future-proofing the road to cater for growing traffic volumes. The Tiaro Bypass will also remove a significant number of heavy vehicles from Tiaro township, improving safety and liveability for residents.

The Bruce Highway through Tiaro contains 3 flood zones, varying speed limits (including a 40km/h school zone), a pedestrian crossing with traffic lights, more than 50 direct property accesses and intersections, and a mix of local and through highway traffic.

Flood-related highway closures can cause significant disruption to passenger and freight movements, with no suitable detour available during major flood events. Closures also impact the national road transport network and can isolate the Tiaro township.

High traffic volumes and the signalised pedestrian crossing through Tiaro contribute to congestion and significant queuing on the Bruce Highway, particularly during peak travel periods.

Benefits

  • Improves flood immunity
  • Improves safety
  • Increases capacity
  • Improves network efficiency
  • Contributes to regional growth

Key features

  • 8.5km of new 4-lane highway east of Tiaro with a concrete centre median separating opposing traffic lanes
  • 2 grade separated interchanges (1 north and 1 south) providing easy connectivity to Tiaro for residents and visitors
  • Realignment of local roads to the closest new interchange
  • Improved highway flood immunity (designed for a 1-in-100-year flood event)

Funding

The project is jointly funded by the Australian and Queensland governments. This funding allocation reflects the Queensland Transport and Roads Investment Program 2024–25 to 2027–28.

Investment ID: 371601

Total investment
$336 million
Australian Government
$268.8 million
Queensland Government
$67.2 million

Current status

Procurement for the Tiaro Bypass has commenced, enabling us to engage the market for the project's main construction works and progress towards awarding a construction contract.

Detailed design has been completed. Construction timeframes will be confirmed once a contractor has been appointed.

The project scope includes:

  • 8.5km of 4-lane highway with a concrete centre median barrier to separate northbound and southbound traffic and reduce the risk of head-on collisions
  • 2 connection points to the Tiaro township, 1 near Wilsons Road to the north and 1 south of Tahiti Road to the south which will provide efficient access to the township and help encourage visitation
  • grade separated interchanges, with overpass bridges to separate local and through traffic, and provide safe connectivity to and from the new bypass
  • realignment of Bauple Drive and Tahiti Road to connect to the new southern interchange providing northbound and southbound highway access.

The new highway will be built on an alignment selected to minimise property impacts, sensitive environmental areas, waterways and heritage artefacts.

Project location map

This map shows how the new four-lane Bruce Highway will bypass Tiaro. It highlights where the road changes, entry and exit ramps, and two interchanges near Tahiti Lane and Tahiti Road. It also shows road realignment, new highway bridges, and the closure of the Bauple Drive intersection
This map shows the design of the 4-lane Tiaro Bypass on the Bruce Highway. It highlights the new northern and southern interchanges with bridges, entry and exit ramps, realigned roads, and the planned closure of the existing Bauple Drive and Bruce Highway intersection

Southern interchange

Artist’s impression of the southern interchange, looking north-west.
Artist’s impression of the southern interchange looking north-west

The new southern interchange, located around 2.5km south of Tiaro town centre, will feature a 60m bridge over the bypass as well as northbound and southbound ramps. These ramps will provide improved access to the new highway for local communities and additional options for highway access during flood events in Tiaro.

Northern interchange

Artist’s impression of the Tiaro Bypass northern interchange, looking north-west.
Artist’s impression of the northern interchange looking north-west

The northern interchange, planned to be located 3km north of Tiaro town centre, will include a highway bridge over Wilsons Road, enabling local and southbound Bruce Highway traffic to enter Tiaro township. 

The interchange will also provide safe, convenient northbound access to the highway from Tiaro and Wilsons Road.

Community feedback

Consultation with Tiaro and surrounding communities has informed planning and design development of the project out since 2019.

Feedback from initial consultation in early 2019 identified strong support for a bypass solution and highlighted the importance of understanding and managing potential impacts on the local community and economy.

The Queensland Government worked with Fraser Coast Regional Council, local businesses and community representatives to identify opportunities arising from the bypass. A community working group helped inform development of the project and prioritise local opportunities. 
Community and stakeholder feedback, together with technical investigations, has informed the published detailed design. The Queensland Government will continue to keep the community informed as the project progresses.

Last updated: 21 July 2026