A planned protest which would have shut down all six lanes of Brisbane's troubled Story Bridge during peak hour this morning was blocked by a court following police action.
The demonstration, scheduled for 8am on Friday 30 May, was organised by active transport advocates pushing for one of the bridge's six lanes to be dedicated to bike riders and pedestrians while footpaths remain closed.
Police asked Brisbane Magistrates Court to stop the protest citing safety concerns. Magistrate Ross Mack sided with police, agreeing that the demonstration could delay emergency services, interrupt public transport and compromise safety.
The 85-year-old Story Bridge's footpaths have been closed since Cyclone Alfred in March, after inspections uncovered concrete degradation and rusted reinforcements.
Bike riders, pedestrians and scooter riders have been urged to consider using another bridge more than 2km away by bike instead.
Brisbane advocates say that two cycling routes across the Story Bridge can carry about twice as many people as the six lanes of general traffic per hour.
Brisbane City Council has pledged to reopen the paths after urgent safety works are completed, but the timeline is still unclear. A broader bridge restoration project is expected to take up to 15 years.
An independent committee recently warned that without full restoration, the bridge could be unable to carry traffic within 20 years.
The question is where the funding for restoration will come from. Options include begging the state and commonwealth for aid, introducing a new rate levy, reintroducing tolls for the first time since 1947 or knocking the bridge down altogether.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said earlier this week that the federal government would not shoulder the bridge's restoration costs and this remained the responsibility of local governments. But the federal government has contributed $2.25 million to a joint business case investigating long-term options for the bridge, which is due in mid-2027.
Protest organiser Kathryn Good said she was disappointed by the court's decision but wouldn't give up.
"It's not the outcome we were seeking from the court," she said. "We won't be giving up the fight to put pressure on council to open up that lane for active transport."
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