POPULATION growth in Jimboomba and surrounding areas will push the Mount Lindesay Highway beyond its design capacity by 2031, according to an Infrastructure Australia report released this week.
The Urban Transport Crowding and Congestion report predicts south-east Queensland congestion would shift from Brisbane's inner eastern roads to those linking the city centre with growth areas in the south-west by 2031.
It forecasts a 73 minute delay for motorists travelling 47 kilometres from Beaudesert to North Logan via the Mount Lindesay Highway during morning peak times and a 56 minute delay during peak afternoon times.
RACQ spokesperson Paul Turner said massive residential developments, not properly serviced by public transport, were adding thousands of cars onto south-east Queensland roads.
"We are seeing huge housing estates being put in the south-west of the south-east corner at the end of the Mount Lindesay Highway, Centenary Highway and Ipswich Motorway," he said.
"There has to be a coordinated approach (to fix this) and it has to involve all three levels of government.
"We can't sustain the current level of funding and poor planning we are seeing.
"We can't survive on three year electoral cycles we need to be thinking 10, 15 and 20 years ahead."
While bus services are expected to service the growing suburbs of Flagstone and Yarrabilba from next year, there is no clear timeline on the delivery of Salisbury to Beaudesert passenger rail.
Transport Minister Mark Bailey said Cross River Rail would give the Queensland government the opportunity to investigate the Salisbury to Beaudesert line extension.
Major works on the Cross River Rail project are expected to be complete by 2024.
Logan Country Safe City chairman David Kenny said the Logan and Scenic Rim community needed to make their voices heard at the ballot box.
"To say 2031 is when the highway will be beyond capacity is just laughable, it is beyond capacity now," he said.
"There is no plan from the state or federal governments...they say they have a plan but there is no implementation.
"We have got an election next year for the state government and then a federal election 18 months after that. If the community doesn't go out and do something we may as well take our bicycles to work."
