The surface is lifting off two highways in far north Queensland not far from where more than 60 drivers got caught in a tar trap at a roadworks site.

Authorities are monitoring two sites on the Palmerston and Kennedy highways, in the same area where drivers’ tyres and vehicles ended up caked in tar that lifted off the Millaa Millaa-Malanda Road on the Atherton Tablelands last week.

The main roads department has been forced to carry out emergency repairs at all three sites, with minister Mark Bailey ordering a full investigation.

More than 60 drivers are seeking compensation after their vehicles wound up covered in tar on the Millaa Millaa-Malanda Road last week.

It’s not clear if any damage has resulted from the two highway sites, which the department says have experienced “stripping”.

Special equipment has been brought in to repair the Kennedy Highway, near Upper Barron Road, with the work expected to take five days.

More than 60 drivers are seeking compensation after their vehicles wound up covered in tar on the Millaa Millaa-Malanda Road last week. Photo: AAP

Loads of aggregate will also be dumped on compromised road surfaces on the Palmerston Highway, and water trucks are being used at both highway sites to reduce heat.

Repairs are also continuing on the Millaa Millaa-Malanda Road, as the department plans for a permanent solution to the mess. The route is open, but at a reduced speed limit.

Transport and Main Roads district director Sandra Burke last week said recent colder, wet weather followed by a sudden heatwave may have destabilised the road surface.

Bridget Daley’s car ended up coated in tar when she used the Millaa Millaa-Malanda Road.

“It was like we were insects caught in a spider’s web and we were sinking. There were people that were pulled up on the side of the road and they were in total and complete disbelief as to what had happened to their vehicles,” she told the ABC.

-AAP