Main construction tender for Coomera Connector Stage 1 South now out to market

The $3.026 billion Coomera Connector Stage 1 project in Queensland has reached new major milestones with the beginning of early works and the main construction tender released for the Stage 1 South package. 

Three contractors have now been shortlisted and are invited to undertake detailed assessment to look at innovative ways to build this section of the multi-billion-dollar project. 

Early works will focus in the areas south of Nerang River, which includes relocation of service utilities and earthworks, to ensure the site is construction-ready. The early works contract was awarded to Winslow Infrastructure Pty Ltd. 

“Getting works started on Stage 1 South of the Coomera Connector is a fantastic milestone, laying the foundations for main construction works for this section from Molendinar to Nerang. 

“Tender for major construction on this package of work has also gone to market. 

“As the Gold Coast continues to grow, we’re getting on with the job of building a future-proofed road that will connect communities and get people home safer and sooner,” Transport and Main Roads Minister Bart Mellish said. 

Coomera Connector Stage 1 will deliver a new 16-kilometre road connecting Coomera and Nerang. This new corridor, once completed, will remove up to 60,000 local trips from the M1 each day by providing an alternative route for the growing communities and commercial hubs of Helensvale and Coomera. 

In addition, the project will also facilitate the use of public and active transport by delivering a shared pedestrian and cycle path with connections into existing and future active transport networks along the route. 

The Australian and Queensland Governments are each committing more than $1.5 billion to plan and build the Coomera Connector Stage 1 project. This investment also includes an additional $432 million each year in the recent State and Federal Budgets to ensure the project is delivered. 

The project is anticipated to support approximately 1,000 direct jobs over its life. 

“The Coomera Connector will transform the lives of South-East Queenslanders, knocking 10 minutes off their journey between Coomera and Southport. 

“It means less time stuck in traffic and more time with our loved ones. 

“We know that road congestion is a significant issue for the region and a drain on the economy which is why we’re getting on with delivering this critical piece of infrastructure,” Federal Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Minister Catherine King said. 

Coomera Connector Stage 1 corridor alignment (source: Department of Transport and Main Roads)

Coomera Connector Stage 1 is being delivered in three major construction packages, namely: 

• Stage 1 North – Shipper Drive, Coomera to Helensvale Road, Helensvale (4 kilometres) 

• • 4 lanes with provision for future widening into the central median to 6 lanes. Bridges will be future-proofed to 6 lanes to help minimise future construction impacts to adjacent residents and the travelling public 

• • Grade-separated interchanges at Shipper Drive and Helensvale Road 

• • An almost 1-kilometre-long bridge over the Coomera River and Saltwater Creek 

• • Open graded asphalt road surface for increased safety and reduced noise 

• • 4.19 kilometres of shared bike and pedestrian path with local path network connections at Shipper Drive, McPhail Road, future Hope Island Station/Hope Island Road, Condamine Crescent, Monterey Keys Drive, Rosswood Court Reserve and Helensvale Road 

• • Upgrades to a section of Foxwell Road and a section of Shipper Drive (now known as the Coomera Link Road) 

• Stage 1 Central – Helensvale Road, Helensvale to Smith Street Motorway, Molendinar (8 kilometres) 

• • 6 lanes 

• • Grade-separated interchanges at Helensvale Road, Gold Coast Highway and Smith Street Motorway 

• • More than 8 kilometres of shared bike and pedestrian path connectiong with local communities and the Helensvale and Parkwood light rail stations 

• • Wildlife corridors for Careel Reserve and Coombabah Creek 

• • Open graded asphalt road surface for increases safety and reduced noise 

• Stage 1 South – Smith Street Motorway, Molendinar to Nerang-Broadbeach Road, Nerang (4 kilometres) 

• • A grade-separated interchange at Southport-Nerang Road 

• • A new intersection at Nerang-Broadbeach Road 

• • A new 300-metre bridge structure over the Nerang River 

• • 4 kilometres of shared bike and pedestrian path with local path network connections for communities at Molendinar and Nerang 

• • Open graded asphalt road surface for increased safety and reduced noise 

Stage 1 North is already under construction and is expected to progressively open to traffic from late 2025. Meanwhile, early works on Stage 1 Central are also underway. 

“Anyone who lives on the Gold Coast knows how frustrating congestion on the M1 is, which is why I committed to building the second M1. 

“Already more than one million hours have been worked on building it, and now people in our community will see machinery on the ground in Nerang. 

“This is a project that will cut travel time and keep hundreds of thousands of Gold Coasters moving,” Member for Gaven Meaghan Scanlon said. 

Source: Queensland Government – Media Statements; Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government; Queensland Government – Department of Transport and Main Roads (1, 2, 3, 4); Roads & Infrastructure Australia; Infrastructure Magazine