General News
15 July, 2026
One-way battle
A GROUP of Innisfail residents is maintaining its fight against a council decision to permanently make part of the riverside Fitzgerald Esplanade a one-way thoroughfare.
They say Cassowary Coast Regional Council ignored their concerns and public opposition to the change.
Instead, council went ahead with disadvantaging “hundreds of motorists” who the group says used the section of road each day.
Spokesman for the residents, John Moyle, said the community first discovered the plan “via the grapevine” in December 2024.
Despite immediate pushback, including an on-site meeting with Mayor Teresa Millwood and a 581-signature petition gathered in three weeks, council unanimously endorsed the one-way shift and started a monitored trial in May 2025.
Frustrated, residents escalated the matter to the Queensland Ombudsman three times. However, the Ombudsman ruled he could not overturn a decision made by a “duly-elected body” unless it was unlawful.
Mr Moyle heavily criticised the consultation process, noting that a key meeting was held at the Tully Showgrounds and advertised as a discussion on the Tully network system.
“Why would any resident in Innisfail attend this meeting to find out if a road in Innisfail ... was going to be made one-way?,” Mr Moyle said.
Residents argue the 200m dual-purpose pedestrian and bike or scooter path along the one-way section – council’s main reason for the one-way conversion – accommodates only a handful of riders each week while connecting to “nothing” at the Campbell Street end.
They maintain the original two-way road was already safe, due to a 40km/h limit and three sets of speed bumps.
A local earthmoving contractor presented detailed drawings for off-street parking on council land between a doctor’s residence and the tennis courts, which they say would have generated far more spaces.
Instead, Mr Moyle warns the new on-street parking configuration has created a dangerous environment for children attending the local dancing school.
“If children alight from the right-hand side of the vehicle, they stand the chance of stepping in front of motor vehicles travelling at speeds of up to 40km/h,” Mr Moyle said.
“If they alight from the left, they stand the chance of stepping in front of e-bikes travelling up to 25km/h. This is a catastrophe waiting to happen.”
The battle culminated at council’s meeting in April. Despite a packed public gallery, councillors voted six to one to keep the road one-way after a debate about the consultation process and how it could have been better handled.
With council again recently declaring the decision final, Mr Moyle said the group was now targeting the next local government election, urging the community to vote for candidates who will listen to constituents and restore the two-way system.
The Observer has offered council the chance to respond further to the group’s concerns.
Read More: Innisfail