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The Monaro Street closure will be extended, but there\u2019s hope the route will reopen before Christmas. Photo: Kim Treasure.<\/p>\n
Queanbeyan\u2019s traffic pain is set to continue, with the discovery of a century-old stormwater drain blowing out the timeline and cost of a major CBD upgrade.<\/p>\n
The main traffic route through Queanbeyan, Monaro Street, has been closed since early March<\/a>. It was expected to reopen in September 2026.<\/p>\n Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council documents reveal that while it was on track to meet that deadline, the \u201cre-discovery\u201d of a stormwater main under the road has forced a delay.<\/p>\n The pipe is closer to the surface and in a different position than anticipated.<\/p>\n \u201cOn sighting this stormwater main for the first time in 100 years, it became apparent that the top of the stormwater main encroaches into the upper layers of the new pavement design,\u201d council papers say.<\/p>\n \u201cBased on current design standards, the project cannot progress with the pavement reconstruction above the stormwater main without further review and consideration of the longer-term functionality of the stormwater main.\u201d<\/p>\n Councillors have voted to seek $3.25 million in NSW Government funding to make sure the main can be used once Monaro Street reopens.<\/p>\n Councillor Mareeta Grundy said it was still unclear how the pipe was missed.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we are actually being asked to believe is that this critical asset has not been inspected, has not been maintained, nor been accounted for, as part of QPRC\u2019s asset management for up to 100 years,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cIf this is so, then this critical asset does not form part of (nor presumably comply with) QPRC\u2019s own stormwater asset management plan.\u201d<\/p>\n Cr Grundy urged her fellow councillors to defer a decision until they had more information, saying there wasn\u2019t enough detail in the meeting papers.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been a right royal mess. It\u2019s been a systemic failure in due diligence.<\/p>\n \u201cBut that doesn\u2019t mean that we just push on without being responsible in assessing $3.25 million of loans that, ultimately, ratepayers will be responsible for.\u201d<\/p>\n Councillor Bryce Wilson also asked how the pipe was missed.<\/p>\n \u201cI do think there are a few \u2013 and here\u2019s a public service term \u2013 \u2018learnings\u2019 that have to be had about how we got to a point that we\u2019re discovering this now.\u201d<\/p>\n In response, a staff member said it simply wasn\u2019t known.<\/p>\n \u201cThis main doesn\u2019t have any surface infrastructure to actually identify that alignment.\u201d<\/p>\n Arguing for a swift resolution, Mayor Kenrick Winchester said he remained confident the road could reopen before Christmas.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the absolute worst thing we can do is not make a decision tonight,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cStaff need clarity, the contractor needs clarity, the community needs clarity \u2026 We can\u2019t put our heads in the sand.\u201d<\/p>\n Cr Grundy\u2019s proposal, which would have seen the matter deferred until further information was presented to councillors, was voted down.<\/p>\n A traditional agent takes 2% of your home sale. We don’t.<\/p>\n Discover more!<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Council staff are recommending that the council adopt option five, which would see the existing 1800-mm-diameter pipe relined and the culvert at the Lowe Street intersection replaced.<\/p>\n This would take eight weeks.<\/p>\n During the meeting, a staff member said other work on the Monaro Street upgrade project could continue while those works were underway.<\/p>\n \u201cThe sooner we\u2019re able to have some certainty around what we\u2019re doing with the stormwater pipe, we can continue with those other works and not prolong the amount of time that we then have to wait before we can get on and do the footpath finishing works,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n Monaro St is the main route for heavy vehicle traffic from the coast to Canberra and further inland.<\/p>\n Following the meeting, NSW Upper House MP Nichole Overall called for the state\u2019s road minister to take over the project.<\/p>\n She said she raised concerns with the minister when the full closure began and that local businesses and residents have been paying the price.<\/p>\n \u201cResidents and businesses were told the pain would be worth it because a full closure, rather than the originally agreed partial closure, would dramatically shorten construction time,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cInstead, barely a few months into the project, costs have now blown out by 28 per cent and serious questions remain about basic infrastructure investigations.\u201d<\/p>\n Before it closed, Monaro Street recorded between 18,000 and 25,000 vehicle trips each day.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/lystr-wordmark-white.png\")
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