Closure of inland route will increase freight costs ‘significantly’ for Queensland’s banana and mango growers

Flood damage on the Palmerston Highway means it will take twice as many smaller trucks using alternative routes to get produce to market. Photograph: Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads

Record-breaking flooding as a result of ex-Cyclone Jasper in north Queensland has cut off critical food supply routes, left communities stranded and disrupted the mango harvest.

The Palmerston Highway, a vital produce route from inland growing regions to east-coast markets, suffered catastrophic damage from the deluge. It’s the only road to the coast accessible by B-doubles – large trucks that can carry two shipping container’s worth of goods – but major splits and cracks meant the 200 B-doubles that traverse the route each week will not be able to drive along it “for months”.