The Queensland mega-mining town that never eventuated

The following quote from 1983 provides an insight into town planning considerations for a proposed coal mining town in the Central Highlands of Queensland.

“Despite their growth rates, the great majority of these mining towns are unlikely to have the economic and social vitality of normal rural centres with similar populations. They are not much more than dormitory settlements, essentially suburbs without cities…For example, better roads could have made it quite feasible to amalgamate Moranbah and Dysart into a single town of some 20,000 to 25,000 people.” Source: Dr. Primod Sharma, University of Queensland, 1983.

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