What's Happening in North Lakes, QLD…

The $168m Moreton Bay Rail Link has taken another major step forward with the recent completion of the 310m quad-track railway bridge over Petrie’s North Pine River.

The project, which will eventually bring rail service access to within 2km of residents in North Lakes, has seen the number of tracks on the bridge double to four in comparison to only two on the original bridge, which is now being demolished.

This, according to Transport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe, will be more than enough to cope with the expected 650 train services that will run into and out of the Moreton Bay region once the entire project has been completed. He said the new bridge was necessary to support the new line between Kippa-Ring and Petrie.

Hinchliffe said an additional track stretching 1.5 kilometres had also been constructed between Petrie and Lawnton to allow the new services to link with those already in existence.

Marketing services used to promote the project across the region have included highly visible poster printing displays outlining the various stages of development.

According to Pine River’s State Member Nikki Boyd, the construction of the new bridge was carried out over a period of 12 months. Its creation has sadly, she said, brought the 80-year history of the first bridge to cross the river to an end.

However, Boyd added, the structure had great community significance and sections of the old bridge would be on display at the Pine Rivers Heritage Museum in the future.