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. The upgrade project will:

reduce delays to road users by increasing capacity of both roads
make it easier, safer and more pleasant to walk and ride
improve amenity with landscaping and verge plantings
improve bus services using both roads by making travel times more reliable
improve accessibility and connectivity of the road network.

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% of people who completed the survey providing support for upgrading the corridor.

Updated concept design

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 Have Your Say.

Council will be holding a series of pop-up information sessions in November 2024, which you can visit to view the updated concept design and speak to a project team member. Visit Have Your Say for details.

Where to from here?

Detailed design is anticipated to begin in mid-2025. The upgrade of Sugar Road and Maud Street will be delivered in stages, with timing subject to future Council budget deliberations. Interim work south of Oloway Crescent is required over the next 12 months to address current safety concerns and improve traffic flow.

Overview

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’.