Petitioners say State Government has a duty of care to deliver free air pumping service
More than 1,400 petitioners have called on the State Parliament to deliver a 24-hour tyre inflation facility at Rainbow Beach.
Member for Gympie, Tony Perrett, said the petition was in response to the State Government’s enforced closure of a free service in July.
The petition from 1,451 petitioners was tabled in State Parliament last week. *
“It requested the House to build and administer a free 24-hour Tyre Inflation Facility at Rainbow Beach to service Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service customer requirements,” Mr Perrett said.
“The petition said that for 40 years Rainbow Beach businesses have carried the burden of filling approximately 800,000 tyres per year on 4WD vehicles that travel to the area to drive on the beaches at Cooloola and Fraser and National Parks.
“It also advised the parliament that the State Government, through Queensland Parks and Wildlife Services receive permit fees from each and every vehicle and advise those vehicles to lower their tyre pressures.
“It said in an egregious failure of duty of care the State does not supply a free facility to reinflate those tyres to ensure the safety of those travellers once they return to our roads.
“The closure of the free services is already causing major problems in the region with cars banking up and clogging State and local roads.
“Locals have told me that it’s now a daily problem and last weekend’s triathlon was a nightmare. It is causing mayhem.
“The State Government ordered the withdrawal of the free service because tenure of the empty block of land it was occurring was impacted by native title issues. **
“I asked the Minister for Natural Resources, Mines and Energy, Anthony Lynham, to help find a workable and satisfactory solution in the interest of common sense.
“The government’s solution is that there are already other businesses providing tyre inflation facilities.
"The Shell station has withdrawn its air hoses leaving the BP station to carry the load of thousands of cars pumping their tyres. It’s unreasonable.
“The region relies on family-friendly adventure-based tourism and beach driving. Whether you are camping or stopping in accommodation houses most people drive on the beach.
“Even if visitors bring their own compressors there are limited places to actually stop and inflate their tyres.
“No one in Brisbane seems to understand or know what happens on the Cooloola Coast. We’ve had one illogical decision after another which lacks common sense and is unworkable.
“It’s been a bureaucratic nightmare designed by bureaucrats with Brisbane centric solutions. It’s a mess,” he said.
- No 1282 – e-petition from 831 petitioners https://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/work-of-assembly/petitions/petition-details?id=3359
- No 1283 - paper petition from 620 petitioners https://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/work-of-assembly/petitions/petition-details?id=3390
**The Minister advised that on 13 December last year the Federal Court recognised the Butchulla People Native Title rights and interest in relation to the Butchulla Land and Sea #2 Claim.
