Queensland Rail - Commonwealth Games timetable

[not_available]

' reduced demand so we reduce services '. 

• The reverse is true. Don't ever forget that.
• As I've said previously somewhere else (probably slightly differently), there are places which get - believe it or not - an increase in traffic/visitors out of peak commute times/Mon-Fri.

[Cazza]

• As I've said previously somewhere else (probably slightly differently), there are places which get - believe it or not - an increase in traffic/visitors out of peak commute times/Mon-Fri.

Exactly. A really simple example. Kids on school holidays. On school holidays, there is a huge increase of patronage off-peak as kids travel to shopping, movies, seeing friends etc. during the day. PT is a very attractive option for students as it's cheap and convenient in addition to the fact that they don't want to be seen anywhere with their parents

It is quite frustrating that PT is viewed by politicians as a football field rather than something that is a genuine, community asset. People will use on PT if it is available and reliable.

An example for me was last night. A group of 8 of us were heading into South Bank for a birthday dinner. I mentioned taking the train in but because of unreliability, we ended up driving two cars in and parking.

[tazzer9]

The problem with the school holiday example is that many kids are okay with waiting a long time on public transport.  My sister and her friends used to travel from brisbane to Mooloolaba fully on public transport.  Leaving in the morning as well so you got the not only the 90 minute frequency trains, you got the ultra slow ones due to the extra crosses.

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/Team_Quirk/status/968343030863482886

[Cazza]

Including a SE Busway shuttle (more importantly 8MP and Garden City) to the GC Line?

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/Schrinner/status/968348894580133888

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> Gold Coast Commonwealth Games public transport: Train drivers get bonus for turning up

TRAIN drivers will get a $1250 one-off bonus simply for turning up to work during this April's Commonwealth Games and more than double their pay for working on days off.

The lump-sum payment will only be paid if all rostered train crew – including train guards – show up on the days they are rostered during the Games period.

Drivers will also get a 225 per cent penalty rate for shifts worked on their rostered days off.

And some other Queensland Rail frontline workers, from platform staff to network response teams, will be able to claim an extra $8 an hour if they work all their shifts during the event.

The generous Games "incentive payments" have been negotiated with the rail unions in a bid to avoid a repeat of the 2016 network meltdown.

Train crew, which includes drivers and guards and other frontline staff, have agreed to cap the amount of annual leave taken across the Games and Easter holidays in return.

A severe shortage of drivers caused the 2016 meltdown, with an independent inquiry in January 2017 linking a built-in shortage of train crew to the creation of overtime opportunities.

It recommended hiring a surplus of drivers, but progress has been slow with just 19 extra qualified drivers on QR's books as of last January compared to at the time of the 2016 timetable collapse.

That has put drivers under pressure during the Games, when Gold Coast services will triple.

QR chief executive officer Nick Easy said incentives were common for international events of this scale, with an extra six million trips expected across the transport network.

"Critical frontline staff including train crew, train controllers, overhead linesman, signal engineers, and station operations staff, will be going above and beyond to deliver a boost to rail services on the Gold Coast line, and we have worked closely with our employees to ensure their extra efforts and flexibility are recognised appropriately," he said.

But Rail Back on Track spokesman Robert Dow likened the payment to a bribe.

"You'd think people would want to go to work and do the right thing anyway," he said.

"We don't agree with that in principle. The train crew are pretty well compensated. They get generous overtime, conditions aren't bad, and on top of that an incentive payment?

"You've got to ask the question, are the doctors and nurses at the Gold Coast hospital going to be paid an incentive to come in and look after sick people?"

Train drivers earn $98,000 a year and last year won a 12 per cent pay rise over four years.

The incentive payment plans were first revealed by The Courier-Mail last November, with QR documents stating it was "aimed at maximising attendances and providing business flexibility".

The Services Union branch secretary Neil Henderson, who represents station operations staff, said yesterday the deal reflected the fact rosters might change and the leave restrictions.

"There's going to be significant pressures on the system and any prudent employer is going to make sure they have their ducks lined up for such a significant time. You only get one shot."

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/969238821387755520

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/969681409743888384

Couriermail Letters to the Editor, March 3, 2018

I JUST gagged over the article about train drivers winning gold for turning up to work (C-M, Mar 2). I thought having a job in this economic climate would be enough incentive to go to work. Once again, the union are bending us over.

John Boyd, Cairns

TRAIN drivers to get extra just for turning up to work. Is this what we can expect from a union-backed Labor Party? We are now paying more for a system that is not working.

Rod Watson, Surfers Paradise

WHEN will the rail fail end? Only a month ago it was reported that Queensland Rail had failed to resurrect its full timetable, with the embattled operator reverting to last year's reduced schedule instead.

Train passengers have dealt with reduced services since October 2016, but QR is still unable to say when it will return to a full service.

To make matters worse, the powerful Rail, Tram and Bus Union continues its battle to protect archaic closed-shop recruitment rules instead of promoting train driver vacancies to the public. It's going to be a real problem with rail services to be slashed to once an hour on weekends across the southeast to supposedly deliver a high frequency timetable to the Commonwealth Games.

The $2.5 million Strachan Inquiry named QR's external hiring restrictions as a factor contributing to the train-driver shortage, and it advised opening recruitment to the public.

But instead, closed-shop ­internal hiring restrictions were locked in to QR driver's new enterprise agreement.

But with an incredible 175 per cent overtime penalty payment, a 12 per cent pay-rise over four years for drivers and guards, and now bonuses just to come to work, it's clear how much grip the union has on QR.

With QR preferring to operate at a 5 to 10 per cent under-supply of train crew, it's not hard to surmise the operation is skewed towards the pecuniary aggrandisement of unionists.

But instead of adopting modern recruitment practices based on a meritorious process, the public will have to endure continued restricted services as arduous appointment processes are favoured ahead of expediency.

Milvio DiBartolomeo,
Wellington Point

JAMMING DOORS

THE new rolling stock trains imported from India are a concern. I am worried about the train doors locking shut leaving passengers with no access to toilet facilities, as well as some trains having no disability access.

I have family on the Gold Coast and, being wheelchair-bound and taxis costing nearly $400 for a return trip to the Gold Coast, I hope to use train travel to cut costs. However, difficulties over the use of toilet facilities concern me. I know for sure I will be apprehensive, which always results in a need to use the loo.

Life in a wheelchair is tough enough. I don't want a major mistake like this to stop me from travelling to the Gold Coast to be part of the Commonwealth Games vibe and to visit my family.

Liz Haydon, Runcorn

[ozbob]

Some feedback received ...   

Just a short note (and rant) about QR's summer holiday timetabling which they are bringing in during the Commonwealth games.
The time table on the Caboolture line sucks. Our morning train has commuters are standing from Narangba to the city. Our regular train has been cancelled and the Nambour train has replaced it. We have complained to QR in January and we told the the summer timetable would not be imposed during the games. WRONG!

Some commuters which include public servents, nurses and allied health staff including pathology staff are expected to work during the games. This means lots of unhappy people before the day starts. The afternoon trains are no better.

To make matters worse are the repeated recordings telling commuters to get excited aboutvtge games with suggestions to walk or ride a bike to work as an alternate means of transport. What a joke and walk from Caboolture. The only alternative transport we have is to drive.
From one of your former students

[ozbob]

Couriermail Quest --> Commonwealth Games bus service from Brisbane: Council on late call for extra runs

BRISBANE'S transport boss has revealed the State Government only officially requested extra bus services just over two weeks ago to get Commonwealth Games spectators home.

Council's public and active transport committee chairman and Deputy Mayor Adrian Schrinner said council received the formal request on February 13 for extra bus services between 10.45pm through to 2.45am to connect with the 24-hour train services operating during the Games.

It means the request came seven weeks ahead of the Opening Ceremony on April 4.

"Now, you would be aware that the Games were announced seven years ago, and on 13 February we've been asked to provide public transport services. I'll leave it at that," he said.

"I'll just leave that there, but we're doing our best to help, and let's hope that the Games are a massive success for Brisbane, for the Gold Coast and for the whole South East Queensland region."

He said the council was also providing extra 222 bus services from the Brisbane CBD to Carindale for access to the cycling and shooting events in Chandler and Belmont.

A Transport and Main Roads (TMR) spokesman insisted February 13 was not the first time the department began discussions about extra services for the Commonwealth Games.

"Discussions around utilising Council bus stops began at the end of 2016 and requests for additional services, including the 222, began in mid-2017," he said.

The spokesman said after TMR released detailed rail timetables, the Brisbane City Council agreed to deliver more late night services in Brisbane to help spectators returning home.

Cr Schrinner said that TMR was referring to "general discussions".

"There was definitely no request for us to provide late night/early morning services until this year," he said.

"The 24-hour train services were only just confirmed and publicly announced by TransLink on 4 February, 2018, so their own plans weren't set in stone prior to this."

TMR stated the extra services would be funded by the state government and delivered as part of the department's existing contract with the Brisbane City Council.

[ozbob]

Prior preparation planning prevents p%ss poor performance...

Bit of a novel concept for 🍌 land

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/971053784506904576

[ozbob]

Sunshine Coast Daily --> Catch a train from Coast to the Games? Forget it

IF YOUR intent was to catch a train from the Sunshine Coast to the Commonwealth Games, it would make sense to forget it.

Rail commuter advocate Jeff Addison has used Queensland Rail's Games' Journey Planner to analyse connections from six major south-east Queensland rail lines to the 261 sessions around the Gold Coast.

What he's found, Mr Addison said, was "a ticket to drive you onto the Bruce Highway".

The average return travel time from Nambour to a Games' event and back was seven hours, 25 minutes and 42 seconds and eight hours 40 minutes and 30 seconds from Maroochydore.

Those are actual travel times excluding the time you spend watching an event.

The poor Games public transport service from the Sunshine Coast, Mr Addison said, comes on top of a 38% cut to services to services since February, 2015.

Initially services to the region were cut from 359 per week to 320. The December summer holiday timetable saw those drop another 27 per cent to 235.

"There's been a massacre of trains to this region," Mr Addison said.

Mr Addison said if you wanted to leave from Maroochydore using public transport to attend two sessions of Beach Volleyball on April 11 for the 4pm session at Coolangatta Beach or the April 12 session timed for 3.30pm it would, according to QR's own Journey Planner, take 11 hours and 11 minutes in travel time.

From Nambour attending the volley ball on those dates would be slightly quicker at 10 hours 09 minutes.

Mr Addison calculated the average return journey from Nambour at seven hours, 25 minutes and 42 seconds and from Maroochydore at eight hours, 40 minutes and 30 seconds.

He found the shortest return journey for Nambour to be five hours, 55 minutes to the Anna Meares Velodrome for Cycling on April 6 for the 1pm session.　 　

From Maroochydore, the shortest return journey was six hours 43 minutes for the same event.

Travelling by public transport from Nambour to Games' events with only 141 sessions (54%) accessible

was at least a better option than travelling from Maroochydore from where only 68 events (26.05%).

A government spokesperson said the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games will be the largest sporting event in Australia in the past decade.　

"We have always said there would be impacts across the broader SEQ network with an additional six million trips on our transport network during games time," the spokesperson said.　

"Heavy rail services will be tripled on the Gold Coast line, and will be running 24/7 during the games along with light rail and event shuttle buses.　

"The GC2018 Journey Planner helps spectators plan ahead to get to their events on time."

　The spokesperson said that given how far the Sunshine Coast was from Gold Coast Games venues he encouraged Games attendee to plan their travel well ahead and make an informed decision about what works best for them in terms of getting to and from events.　

"In some cases, particularly when travelling a long distance across multiple cities for an early morning or late night event, some spectators may choose to stay down at the Gold Coast, or utilise one of the 10,000 additional park and ride spots specifically for games spectators," he said.

"These can be booked for free through the GC2018 Journey Planner. These have been provided in addition to existing commuter park and rides to keep everyone moving during the games."　

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/973369157352697857

https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/973373289228730368

[ozbob]

Typo in the SCD Article, reduction in services is actually 35% (not 38%).

Still a lot ...   

[ozbob]

The SCD article is now up on the Couriermail website ..

https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/973387961667502080

[red dragin]

I scored late release tickets last night to a concert at the Gold Coast Arts Centre on Saturday night. I want to be there at gates opening, to get a spot at the front. My wife doesn't 

I have to leave about 2.30pm to get there by 4pm by car. She'd have to leave home at about 3.00pm to get there at 6.30pm by PT (ignoring the track closures) 

Anyone not in the CBD or close to the Airport - Gold Coast line corridor will end up driving.

[ozbob]

Yo.  The rest of the rail network is ratsh%t ...

[Mr X]

Yeah it's nice and dandy having 6 trains an hour to the gold coast but whats the point if no one else has a reliable train to connect to it? At least visitors at the airport won't be left waiting

[#Metro]

I guess people were expected to take a hotel in Brisbane or the Gold Coast?

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/Jeffrey_Addison/status/973561632847638528

[ozbob]

PDFs now available ...

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/974063712351928320

[ozbob]

Each line has 3 timetables e.g.


New: Gold Coast and Airport lines - GC2018 timetable 5-15 April 2018 (PDF, 865 KB)

New: Gold Coast and Airport lines - 3-4 and 16-20 April 2018 (PDF, 594 KB)

New: Gold Coast and Airport lines - Easter timetable 2018 (PDF, 637 KB)

And additional

New: Inner city stations - GC2018 timetable 5-15 April 2018 (PDF, 997 KB)

New: Inner city stations - 3-4 and 16-20 April 2018 (PDF, 807 KB)

New: Inner City stations - Easter timetable 2018 (PDF, 912 KB)

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/7NewsBrisbane/status/974131941321588736

[Fares_Fair]

Each line has 3 timetables e.g.


New: Gold Coast and Airport lines - GC2018 timetable 5-15 April 2018 (PDF, 865 KB)

New: Gold Coast and Airport lines - 3-4 and 16-20 April 2018 (PDF, 594 KB)

New: Gold Coast and Airport lines - Easter timetable 2018 (PDF, 637 KB)

And additional

New: Inner city stations - GC2018 timetable 5-15 April 2018 (PDF, 997 KB)

New: Inner city stations - 3-4 and 16-20 April 2018 (PDF, 807 KB)

New: Inner City stations - Easter timetable 2018 (PDF, 912 KB)

Strewth
A smorgasbord of train timetables

I'd hate to be the Timetable guy (or girl) in Queensland Rail.

I'm off to count trains 

[Paul B]

Strewth indeed. It would've been easier to remember if it was just hourly on all lines than this hodge podge. Not a single post on either QR or Translink facebook sites either..

[Fares_Fair]

Didn't take long.
Even less to count.

Yet further cuts to #SunshineCoast add to massacre - again for #CG2018
More than Dec Summer Holiday Interim Timetable

Feb 2015 = 359/week
Jan 2017 = 320/week ( 🔪11%)
Dec 2017 = 235/week (🔪 27%)
CG2018 =   228/week. (🔪 3%)

Overall a new record low 🔪 of 36.5% since Feb 2015

[Cazza]

I don't even think they make that many cuts in Masterchef

[#Metro]

Didn't take long.
Even less to count.

Yet further cuts to #SunshineCoast add to massacre - again for #CG2018
More than Dec Summer Holiday Interim Timetable

Feb 2015 = 359/week
Jan 2017 = 320/week ( 🔪11%)
Dec 2017 = 235/week (🔪 27%)
CG2018 =   228/week. (🔪 3%)

Overall a new record low 🔪 of 36.5% since Feb 2015

Where is the scary horror music that goes with this stat?? #ScaryMusic

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/974405053384507392

[ozbob]

https://twitter.com/MarkBaileyMP/status/974535918064254976

[BrizCommuter]

April Timetable Confusion!
https://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2018/03/april-timetable-confusion.html

[#Metro]

^^ Can we have a counter for how many timetable changes (issued printed timetables, not simple service changes) since #RailFail?

Queensland Rail is making CONNEX look good!!

[ozbob]

April Timetable Confusion!
https://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2018/03/april-timetable-confusion.html

Thanks!  All outlets & ...

https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/974688364430467072

^

https://twitter.com/Robert_Dow/status/974709411691184130

[BrizCommuter]

^ Thanks. There is a lot of community resentment over the train timetable changes for the Comm Games. In addition to what is in the blog post, I've had feedback from Ferny Grove Line users travelling to South Bank and Park Rd who are not looking forward to the return of the Summer Holiday Timetable, and definitely not looking forward to 0% of Ferny Grove services running through to South Bank. Many co-workers (despite being warned) are still completely unaware of the multiple timetables, and that the week after the games will also be affected.

A commonwealth volunteer that BrizCommuter knows was planning on driving to Beenleigh park and ride to avoid the hourly train services on the FG Line. She asked if the spaces were bookable (as with some of the park and rides). The answer was no, and we can't guarantee spaces. Then she was told "maybe you should get here earlier to get a space". What, get there at 7am for a 12pm starting shift? It's going to be a mess!

[ozbob]

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> Street entertainers to help ease public transport congestion during the Commonwealth Games

TRANSPORT bosses will literally send in the clowns under a radical plan to ease pressure on the strained Queensland Rail network during next month's Commonwealth Games.

The Palaszczuk Government has confirmed it will pay roving performers and live acts to divert crowds exiting Commonwealth Games events en masse in a bid to stagger the arrival of rail passengers at Gold Coast train stations.

Transport planning has been identified as a key pressure point for the Games, with the rail network playing a crucial plank in easing gridlock on Gold Coast roads.

Just one train seating 750 people will take 468 cars off the road, planning documents show.

But the Games coincides with a time of intense pressure for Queensland Rail, which is still in the grip of a train driver shortage and faces a potentially disastrous court challenge that could sideline its New Generation Rollingstock fleet, blowing a hole in its Games planning.

Documents released to the State Opposition under Right to Information reveal one strategy to ease peak-hour pressure is to "stagger the flow of customers" by entertaining them en route.

Transport Minister Mark Bailey said a range of themed entertainment was planned at key transport facilities to keep games spectators "engaged and entertained on their journey".

He said the entertainment would help spread out arrivals and departures around big events.

Entertainment includes roving performers between Nerang station and Carrara stadium.

"The performers will engage with spectators to encourage walking to and from the stadium, reducing queuing and keep people moving," Mr Bailey said.

"This is all part of the colour and excitement of the Games – we want people to enjoy their Games experience from the moment they step on the station.

Screens will also be installed at Helensvale and Nerang stations to play films and sporting highlights.

But State Opposition leader Deb Frecklington said Labor should be more focused on getting the trains to run on time rather than "trotting out circus acts or magic shows."

"Labor's ongoing rail fail and Commonwealth Games planning debacle would make Queenslanders sceptical that everything will run smoothly," she said.

QR faces ongoing uncertainty over the ability to continue using new trains that do run foul of disability access laws, despite the state arguing the trains were desperately needed.

The Australian Human Rights Commission this month released a preliminary decision rejecting an application by the State for an exemption to the rules to meet Games' demand.

Mr Bailey has previously insisted the problem trains would still run during the event.

[achiruel]

So they're sending the QR board to try to distract patrons from getting on the train? Hmmm.