RACQ warns motorists to secure items as household debris litters roads
RACQ is reminding Queensland motorists to secure their load after unveiling some of the more unusual items found on the State’s roads in FY24.
From step ladders to mattresses and garden tools, RACQ’s Traffic Response Units (TRUs) have seen it all.
The Club’s TRU officers are essential first-responders for the Department of Transport and Main Roads and Brisbane City Council, providing quick clearance solutions, break-down assistance and traffic control for hazards on South East Queensland roads.
RACQ Principal Technical Researcher and former patrol officer Andrew Kirk said the team attended more than 20,500 jobs in FY24 and discovered a wide-range of household items.
“Our TRU officers travel throughout South East Queensland helping motorists and making sure our roads are safe,” Mr Kirk said.
“In the last financial year, they picked up 30 mattresses, 15 step ladders, 12 garden tools and 10 pieces of outdoor furniture, among other obscure items.
“The team has also come across the usual suspects found on our roads, including tie down straps, tarps as well as plastic, timber and metal debris.”
Mr Kirk said no matter how far you’re travelling, it doesn’t take long to secure your load correctly.
“Whether you’re doing a spring clean trip to the dump, moving house or completing a DIY project, we want to issue a timely reminder for motorists to safely load their vehicle or trailer,” Mr Kirk said.
“Taking an extra 10 or 15 minutes to ensure your load is correctly secured could save you or another motorist from a potentially deadly incident.
“Not only is it a legal requirement but it guarantees the safety of everyone using our roads and also ensures you don’t damage the road infrastructure.”
In addition to clearing stranded items, the TRUs attended a range of congestion-related incidents, including 2,718 crashes in FY24.
Mr Kirk said any number of crashes is too many.
“While the work our TRUs do in patrolling Queensland roads is important, we’d rather see them attending zero crashes,” he said.
“We urge Queenslanders to consider the safety of themselves and others every time they get behind the wheel and always drive to the conditions.”
List of items found on the road by RACQ’s TRU network in FY24
- 15 step ladders
- 30 mattresses and bedding
- 50 tie down straps
- 40 tyre carcasses
- 10 pieces of outdoor furniture
- 10 plastic pipes
- 56 pieces of metal debris
- 10 air-conditioning ducts
- 10 rolls of wall/ceiling insulation
- 12 garden tools
- 24 vehicle components
- 38 pieces of timber debris
- 14 tarps
- 32 pieces of plastic debris
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