Maroochydore Sugar Road and Maud Street upgrade

With Maroochydore continuing to grow, more workers, residents and visitors are travelling to and from the heart of the Sunshine Coast.

Sunshine Coast Council is planning to widen and upgrade Sugar Road and Maud Street, which together function as one of the main routes into the centre of Maroochydore from the south, for all modes of transport. Revamping Sugar Road and Maud Street will create a healthier, user-friendly environment.

Project background

Plans have been in place for more than 20 years to update the Sugar Road and Maud Street corridor. 

Sugar Road and Maud Street, from Bungama Street to Wises Road, will be upgraded across multiple stages. The project upgrade benefits include:

• new, separated pathways for walking and riding to reduce conflict with vehicle traffic
• new signalised and raised priority crossings at key intersections to make it safer for people to cross these busy roads
• widening Sugar Road and Maud Street from two to four lanes to increase traffic capacity, improve traffic flow, reduce ‘short-cutting’ in nearby side streets and address safety concerns
• making the area greener and more comfortable and enjoyable for walking and riding with new planted verges, trees, landscaped garden beds and shaded pathways
• providing a transport corridor that supports a vibrant, connected and future-ready Maroochydore.

The project’s sequence of stages and construction timing will be subject to future budget considerations.

Where to from here?

Following the revised concept design which was informed by community feedback, detailed design is underway and is expected to be completed by early 2026. The upgrade of Sugar Road and Maud Street will be delivered in stages, with timing subject to future Council budget deliberations. 

Interim upgrade works - Sugar Road

While Council continues detailed design for the Maud Street upgrades, some interim works will progress on Sugar Road, between Oloway Crescent and the Sugar Road-Wises Roads roundabout. 

Works will take place from December 2025 to early 2026 and include line marking changes, minor footpath improvements, new cycle ramps and improvements to cycle lanes. These upgrades will help to improve traffic flow and safety in the shorter term, ahead of the longer-term stages for the transport corridor.

For more details, please read the November Community Update. 

Community engagement 

Thank you to everyone who provided their feedback as part of the 2023-2024 community engagement activities.

In August 2023, Council released a draft concept design for community feedback. The community acknowledged the current issues with travelling along Sugar Road and Maud Street with more than 80 per cent of people who completed the survey providing support for upgrading the corridor.

Council has reviewed community and stakeholder feedback on the draft concept design and taken this into consideration, where feasible, for further technical investigation. This process has informed the updated concept design which is now available to view on Council's Have Your Say website. 

Background

Sugar Road and Maud Street are key access routes with the number of vehicles, pedestrians and riders forecast to increase in the coming decade.

Both Sugar Road and Maud Street are heavily congested during peak hours, with buses, private vehicles and commercial vehicles experiencing long traffic queues and delays. There’s also a lack of safe, off-road walking and riding paths and crossing locations.

Improving road safety for buses, private vehicles, freight and emergency vehicles, reducing congestion and providing safer and more accessible walking and riding paths along this important transit route are top priorities for Council.

Council also wants to provide a safe and inclusive environment for walkers, riders and all mobility needs, to improve the area’s connectivity and accessibility.

Council continues to work with the Queensland Government Department of Transport and Main Roads to ensure an integrated outcome at either end of the Sugar Road and Maud Street upgrade so that the roads controlled by different levels of government function as ‘one network’.

Contact us

It’s easy to keep up to date with the latest construction news by subscribing for our emailed project updates. 

If you would like more information or have any questions about the project please email this dedicated project email address: sugarmaudupgrade@sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au