The Government of Queensland in Australia has revealed that the A$100.4m ($75.8m) Boundary Road Bridge over the Bruce Highway has been completed ahead of schedule and is now opened for traffic.

The bridge was built to ease traffic congestion levels for motorists travelling on the north side of Brisbane region.

Australian Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Darren Chester said: “This bridge is another piece in the puzzle of making the Bruce Highway safer and more reliable for all motorists, including freight vehicles, local residents and tourists.

“The results of the Australian Government’s A$6.7bn ($5.7bn) investment in the Bruce Highway are there for all to see, including this new bridge, which was built using A$80.3m ($60.6m) from the Australian Government and A$20.1m ($15.1m) from the Queensland Government.”

Chester further explained that the new bridge was part of the coalition’s A$50bn ($37.7bn) Infrastructure Investment Programme and a key component of the Boundary Road Interchange Upgrade project.

"This particular upgrade will significantly reduce delays at the interchange, as well as reduce the number of congestion related crashes, while improving overall operational safety."

Queensland Minister for Main Roads and Road Safety Mark Bailey said: “Construction on this A$100.4m ($75.8m) upgrade has progressed faster than expected transforming the interchange, enabling traffic to move faster, greatly benefitting local commuters, cyclists, pedestrians and local businesses within the area.

“This particular upgrade will significantly reduce delays at the interchange, as well as reduce the number of congestion related crashes, while improving overall operational safety.”

The new bridge was constructed to the north of the existing interchange and it featured six lanes wide with four dedicated left slip-lanes to provide access to the Bruce Highway on-ramps.

Majority of the lanes are reported to have opened to the traffic.

Final alignments for the Bruce Highway on-ramps will allow opening of all six lanes and is scheduled to be completed by September this year.