“As of now, I am pleased to say the roundabout is not going to happen,” Mr Bromhead said.

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“I have spoken with the director of the RMS, I have spoken with the minister, and I have spoken with council, and the work has been paused. We are going back to the drawing board and we are going to come up with a solution with more community consultation.”

Tuncurrry resident, Leon Austin, who previously spoke out against construction plans was pleasantly surprised at the change in plans.

“It’s good to see government listening to the community and responding to what we want, rather than what they think will work,” he said.

“A change is certainly needed, but it needs to be a customised solution. A roundabout would have caused more minor accidents and a considerable increase in traffic congestion over the bridge, it wouldn’t fix anything.

“The community has strongly opposed this development from the start, so it’s good to know someone has listened.”

And listened they have, with Mr Bromhead citing feedback from the community as the key consideration in halting the plans.

“The level of concern and complaints from the very start of this process has shown it was never going to be the right solution,” he said.

“There is no doubt something needs to change, but this isn’t the answer. On that stretch of road in Tuncurry to the bridge there is roundabout, roundabout, traffic lights, traffic lights, and to add in another roundabout, especially with the level of holiday traffic on that street isn’t practical. 

“We are saying stop, let’s revisit this, ask for public input, and together with the public, look at alternative solutions that will be effective. I hope and trust that this will happen, and that we will be able to find a new plan. The RMS has said that doing nothing is simply not an option, so we need to find a better one.”