Improvements are on the way to a major road in the Sunshine Coast’s fastest-growing area.
Upgrades will be made to a 1.4km stretch of Aura Boulevard – a main thoroughfare in Australia’s largest master-planned community, Aura.
The work, starting this week, will include duplication of the road to two lanes in each direction between the Bells Creek Arterial Road roundabout and the Edwards Terrace and Aura Boulevard intersection.
It will also include the installation of a new signalised pedestrian crossing at Berry Terrace and upgrades to two intersections with Baringa Drive.
Developer Stockland has engaged civil contractor BMD to deliver the work, which is expected to be completed by late next year.
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A Stockland spokesperson said the section of road was crucial and that upgrades would help cater for the area’s rapidly growing population.
“These works will help to increase the capacity of the transport network and improve traffic and pedestrian flow around the area, ultimately enhancing access and movement across the community,” they said.
“The road network upgrade forms part of the infrastructure agreement linked to the master plan and has been planned to progressively increase traffic capacity and connectivity as the community grows.”
The stretch of road is the entry point to schools and shops, including the Baringa Retail Centre, and is a key connector between Aura and the Caloundra centre.
There could be some minor impacts on motorists during the works.
“Local road and pedestrian movements will be maintained throughout construction, with temporary traffic controls and reduced speed limits in place for safety,” the spokesperson said.
The bus stop near the shopping centre is expected to be relocated during the work, with a location to be confirmed.
Work is set to be carried out Monday to Friday, generally between 7am and 5pm, with some work on Saturday. The community will be notified if night works are required.
There were a handful of locals who expressed their displeasure at the timing of the works.
“Planning at its very worst,” David Ireland said. “A new area about to be inconvenienced for maybe 18 months because it was not done properly in the first instance.”
“School runs and peak hours are gonna be awesome,” Adam Ralph said.
“Late 2026 – brutal,” Rob Tea said.
“Planning for the road … after the area is populated is dumb,” Matt Wallace said.
It’s one of several road projects at Aura. Some of the others are at Aura Business Park and Nirimba Drive. A new road is also being planned to link Aura and Golden Beach.
