Arabic version: بيغ بانانا تستعد لطريق كوفز هاربور الالتفافي

According to ABC News, the $2.2 billion Coffs Harbour bypass is expected to open in December, removing one of the east coast’s major traffic bottlenecks but diverting highway traffic away from the Big Banana and other local businesses.

The bypass will allow motorists travelling between Melbourne and Brisbane on the Hume Highway and Pacific Motorway to avoid Coffs Harbour’s 12 sets of traffic lights. About 35,000 vehicles a day currently pass the Big Banana, the landmark built beside the old Pacific Highway in 1964.

Big Banana chief executive Michael Lockman said about one million people stop at the landmark each year, although not all enter the fun park. The business has invested up to $20 million over the past decade in rides and a water park as it prepares for life after the bypass. It employs 170 staff in peak season, and bank data indicates about 10 per cent of people travelling through Coffs Harbour spend money there.

Mr Lockman said the business aimed to attract visitors to Coffs Harbour rather than simply rely on people passing through. Some travellers said they would be less likely to stop without the attraction being directly on their route, while others described visiting the Big Banana as an Australian road-trip tradition.

More than 50 local business owners have attended workshops on adapting to reduced passing traffic. They examined the experience of Geelong, which was bypassed by a ring road 12 years ago. Former Tourism Geelong executive director Roger Grant said investment in public infrastructure, the waterfront and attractions helped make the city a destination rather than a stop on the way to the Great Ocean Road.