Manly Boat Ramp Works: What Moreton Bay Trailer Boaters Need to Know This Summer

By Jason Rieck · Gold Coast · 24 October 2026

If your summer plan involves backing a trailer down at Manly and heading out into Moreton Bay, the ramp will look a little different for the next few weeks. Maritime Safety Queensland has started maintenance on the north and south boat ramps at Manly Boat Harbour, and the work is staged so that only one ramp is open at a time until both are finished [1].

It is not the only job on the southern bay. On 20 October, Marine Business News reported that the Queensland Government and Redland City Council had started maintenance bed levelling at Cleveland's Toondah Harbour, with One Mile at Dunwich on North Stradbroke Island (Minjerribah) next in line [2]. Neither project is a headline grabber. Both land right as the spring boating season builds, and both touch places where a lot of trailer boats get wet.

Here is what is happening, when, and how to plan around it.

What is being done at Manly

According to the Queensland Government notice published on 21 October 2026, the Manly works include grout-filled mattresses to strengthen scour protection, new toe planks on the lower sections of the ramps, and restoration of rock shoulders where required [1]. The stated goal is to improve the ramps' "safety, resilience and operational life" and keep "reliable boating access to Moreton Bay" [1].

The tender documents give a little more detail. A QBuild contract titled "Manly Boat Harbour Boat Ramp Reconstruction 2026", published on 29 June and closed on 23 July 2026, describes treating toe scouring on the northern and southern ramp facilities and supplying loose 150 mm rock for ramp shoulders where the existing rock has eroded [3].

In plain terms, the toe is the bottom end of the ramp, where the concrete meets the seabed, and scour is erosion around it. A drop-off at the end of the ramp is the last thing you want under a trailer wheel at low tide. Fixing the toe and the shoulders is the kind of maintenance most ramp users never notice until it is missing.

The timeline

Here is the schedule as published [1]:

• Southern ramp: works have begun and are scheduled for completion by early November.
• Northern ramp: works start after the southern ramp is finished.
• Both ramps: planned for completion by December 2026, weather and site conditions permitting.
• Access: staging means one ramp stays open to the public while the other is worked on.

Maritime Safety Queensland said it scheduled the works outside the peak spring school holiday period to reduce the impact on the community [1]. That is sensible timing, but the job still runs into late spring. With one ramp doing the work of two, allow for a wait on busy mornings.

Toondah Harbour and Dunwich

The bed levelling job is a different kind of maintenance. The Queensland Government says it will "redistribute naturally accumulated sand and silt to create a more consistent channel profile, improve navigable depths and address high spots and shoaling" [2]. That improves access and safety for both recreational and commercial users [2].

Work had already started at Toondah Harbour when the notice was published, with completion "expected soon". Works at One Mile, Dunwich were about to begin, and all works are expected to be finished by late October 2026, weather and site conditions permitting [2]. Traffic management and safety measures will be in place to manage vessel movements during the works [2].

For skippers, that means two things. In the short term, expect equipment on the water and follow any directions you get. In the medium term, the shoaling that catches people out on a falling tide should be less of a problem in the treated areas. Shallow spots move, though, so a fresh channel profile does not replace local knowledge or a careful eye on the sounder.

Why ramp maintenance matters more every year

Queensland has a lot of registered boats, and the number keeps growing. Department of Transport and Main Roads figures show 277,045 vessels on the Queensland register at 30 June 2024, up from 264,547 in 2020 and 233,554 in 2010 [4]. That is roughly 19 per cent more registered vessels than in 2010.

The industry is paying attention to that trailer fleet too. The Boating Industry Association's October 2026 edition of its Logbook publication explores "the impact of Australia's under 8 metre fleet" [5].

More boats on the same infrastructure puts more wear on ramps, more pressure on parking and more need for good etiquette. Maintenance programs like the Manly works are how ageing ramps keep up with that load.

The rules at the ramp still apply

Fewer lanes do not change the law. Queensland's Transport Infrastructure (Public Marine Facilities) Regulation 2023 sets out offences for state-managed boat ramps, each carrying a maximum penalty of 20 penalty units [6]:

• You must not drive or park a vehicle on a boat ramp unless you are using it to launch or retrieve a vessel.
• If you are launching or retrieving, you must do it "as quickly as is reasonably possible".
• You must not obstruct another person's use of a boat ramp or landing.
• You must not anchor, moor or place a vessel near a ramp where it is likely to get in someone else's way.
• You must not carry out maintenance or repairs to a vessel on a boat ramp.

The same regulation also lets the chief executive control access to, and use of, a boat ramp by regulatory notice, and lets authorised officers give directions [6]. During works, the signs at Manly are not suggestions. Maritime Safety Queensland has asked boaties to plan ahead, follow onsite signage, stay alert to changed conditions and travel at a safe speed near the work area [1].

A practical plan for launching at Manly this season

The Queensland Government's Get Ready boating safety checklist is a handy framework, and it suits a crowded ramp well [7]. Here is how it applies while Manly runs on one ramp.

Before you leave home

• Check the tide and weather forecast, and tell someone your plan, including time, route and safe anchorages [7].
• Check your safety equipment, navigation lights, batteries and tool kit at home, not on the ramp [7].

In the car park

• Use the rigging lane to prepare: bungs screwed in firmly and loose items secured [7].
• Make sure your passengers know where the safety gear is and how to use it [7].
• Log on with your local volunteer marine rescue group before you go [7].

On the ramp

• Wait your turn, then launch quickly and clear the ramp so the next crew can go [6][7].
• Watch for changed conditions near the work zone and keep your speed down nearby [1].
• If the open ramp has a queue, move the boat away from the ramp area rather than holding it alongside [6].

Coming home

• Wait your turn to retrieve, then secure the boat and gear in the rigging lane, not on the ramp [7].
• Log off with the volunteer marine rescue group [7].
• Leave the wash-down and the once-over for the trailer, the motor and the gear until you are clear of the ramp [6][7].

What the notices do not say

A few gaps are worth noting. The Manly notice does not give exact daily closure hours, a fixed date for the northern ramp to close, or any change to parking [1]. The Toondah and Dunwich notice does not say which channel sections are being levelled or what depths are being targeted [2]. Dates are given as "weather and site conditions permitting" in both notices [1][2]. If you are planning a specific trip, check the Queensland Government's website and the signs on site before you tow [1].

The bottom line

Manly Boat Harbour is getting maintenance it needs, and the bay is getting a little more navigable around Toondah and Dunwich. The trade-off is a few weeks of reduced ramp capacity heading into summer. Patience, a car-park routine and good ramp manners will get everyone on the water faster.

At Cat Cruisers we build trailerable boat-caravans here on the Gold Coast, so a well-kept ramp matters to our owners as much as anyone. If you are thinking about a trailerable vessel, a sea trial is a good chance to practise a ramp routine before your first busy weekend.

Sources

1. Queensland Government, "Manly Boat Harbour boat ramp improvement works underway", Marine Business News, 21 October 2026. https://www.marinebusinessnews.com.au/2026/10/manly-boat-harbour-boat-ramp-improvement-works-underway/

2. Queensland Government, "Bed levelling works at Toondah Harbour and One Mile, Dunwich", Marine Business News, 20 October 2026. https://www.marinebusinessnews.com.au/2026/10/bed-levelling-works-at-toondah-harbour-and-one-mile-dunwich/

3. QBuild, "Manly - Manly Boat Harbour Boat Ramp Reconstruction 2026" (tender CN-27115MIC), Australian Tenders, published 29 June 2026. https://www.australiantenders.com.au/tenders/618316/manly-manly-boat-harbour-boat-ramp-reconstruction-2026

4. Department of Transport and Main Roads, "Vessels on Queensland Register as at 30 June from 1991 to 2024", Queensland Government, 2024. https://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/_/media/safety/transport-and-road-statistics/registration/vessels_on_register_queensland_june.pdf

5. Boating Industry Association, "Logbook October 2026", Issuu, 6 October 2026. https://issuu.com/biaofnsw/docs/logbook_october_2026

6. Queensland Parliamentary Counsel, "Transport Infrastructure (Public Marine Facilities) Regulation 2023" (current as at 26 June 2026), Queensland Legislation. https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/pdf/inforce/current/sl-2023-0110

7. Department of Transport and Main Roads, "DIY Boating Safety Checklist" (Get Ready Queensland), Queensland Government, undated. https://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/~/media/communityandenvironment/get%20ready/getreadypredeparturewaterchecklist.pdf