hit by a car and killed<\/a> along a stretch Tallebudgera Connection Rd known as \u2018devil\u2019s elbow\u2019.<\/p>\nThe transport department trialled lowering the speed limit from 60km\/h to 50km\/h along the 2.7km stretch, from Valley Drive to Currumbin Creek Rd, during daylight hours when koalas were most active.<\/p>\n
They also installed new warning signs and vehicle-activated flashing LED boards to remind drivers to slow down.<\/p>\n
The state government said the initiative would better protect the marsupials and improve wildlife connectivity in one of the city\u2019s key koala habitats.<\/p>\n
The poles are an alternative to traditional koala ropes and ladders and were designed by Gold Coast-based company Habitec.<\/p>\n
They were trialled at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary for a year and found to be effective in helping koalas safely escape busy road areas.<\/p>\n
Currumbin MP Laura Gerber said the new project would help to protect the under-siege locals.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe new escape poles will give koalas a safer way to move between habitats along<\/p>\n
Tallebudgera Connection Rd, especially during breeding season from August to<\/p>\n
April,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur community knows too well the risks koalas face on this busy corridor, following<\/p>\n
the heartbreaking loss of Hernando in 2022.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Tallebudgera community has long called for stronger protections for native<\/p>\n
wildlife along this stretch of road and we are delivering a practical solution.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis investment will improve safety for both koalas and motorists and help protect<\/p>\n
our native wildlife for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n
Currumbin Wildlife Hospital\u2019s head of veterinary science Dr Michael Pyne said Tallebudgera Connection Rd was a hotspot for vehicles hitting koalas.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the time of year when koalas are on the move, and we typically see more<\/p>\n
koalas hit by cars as a result of the earlier evenings,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re encouraging motorists to take extra care during the winter months,<\/p>\n
particularly when travelling through key koala habitats like Tallebudgera Connection<\/p>\n
Rd.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Koala poles have been installed along a notorious stretch of Gold Coast road after years of community calls…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":794995,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[64,63,128,338],"class_list":["post-794994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-science","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/794994","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=794994"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/794994\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/794995"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=794994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=794994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=794994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}