Article and discussion: High-speed trains for Coast by 2031

[ozbob]

From the Gold Coast Bulletin click here!

High-speed trains for Coast by 2031

High-speed trains for Coast by 2031

Suzanne Lappeman   |  August 31st, 2010

HIGH-speed express passenger tilt trains will be rocketing between the Gold Coast and Brisbane in just 60 minutes under a new plan to double the number of people using public transport over the next 20 years.

The Bligh Government will today announce it is looking at replacing the Gold Coast to Brisbane trains with tilt train technology that enables increased speed on regular rail tracks.

Premier Anna Bligh said the super fast commuter trains would be part of a rail revolution for southeast Queensland which will be outlined in the Integrated Regional Transport Plan, with the aim of increasing the share of public transport use from seven to 14 per cent.

But there is no timeframe for the trains to be introduced and no funding.

"We need to completely overhaul the way trains operate to achieve this level of growth and provide a level of service that is superior to driving a car," she said.

"We are working to deliver a rail revolution -- a network that carries more people, more often, more quickly.

"We're looking at buying different types of trains with bathrooms for the comfort of passengers and 'tilt train technology' to achieve faster travel times of about an hour between these cities."

Ms Bligh said the European style 'super commuter' trains would run express from the Gold and Sunshine Coasts direct to Brisbane city and reach speeds of up to 160km/h.

The current speed limit on the Gold Coast line is 140km/h with a travel time between Varsity Lakes and Central stations of about one hour and 20 minutes.

Driving the same distance would take about an hour and a half in peak-hour traffic.

Queensland Rail already runs a tilt train from Brisbane to Rockhampton and Cairns at a maximum speed of 160km/h.

But new European super trains, that run on specially laid tracks, can reach speeds of up to 320km/h.

She said by 2031 Brisbane City Council area would be home to about 1.3 million people, the Gold Coast would house about 750,000 residents and nearly 500,000 people would call the Sunshine Coast home.

"If we link these cities by fast rail, we can avoid the need to expand existing motorways and encourage more people to travel by rail rather than road," she said.

Nice objective, but we need some fairly fundamental issues sorted first ...

[ozbob]

Blog comment:

South East Queensland has the worst train frequency in Oz and for comparable cities world wide.  There are massive track issues that need to be fixed first.  For example, duplication from Beerburrum to Nambour and Coomera to Helensvale, and triplication from Kuraby to Beenleigh.  Then providing the Cross River Rail project is achieved, then we might start to be a in position to introduce faster services.   Also requires significant signalling upgrades as well.  Nice objective, but fixing up what we have now is the first step.

[ozbob]

Premier Anna Bligh said the super fast commuter trains would be part of a rail revolution for southeast Queensland which will be outlined in the Integrated Regional Transport Plan, with the aim of increasing the share of public transport use from seven to 14 per cent.

We need to aim for 40% ....

[#Metro]

"We need to completely overhaul the way trains operate to achieve this level of growth and provide a level of service that is superior to driving a car," she said.

"We are working to deliver a rail revolution -- a network that carries more people, more often, more quickly.

"We're looking at buying different types of trains with bathrooms for the comfort of passengers and 'tilt train technology' to achieve faster travel times of about an hour between these cities."

Ms Bligh said the European style 'super commuter' trains would run express from the Gold and Sunshine Coasts direct to Brisbane city and reach speeds of up to 160km/h.

Sigh. It is just me or is the government obsessed with starting a dog's breakfast of extreme expense, gigantic mega projects which take forever to complete and critically hinge on huge amounts of money from the federal government?

Increasing the frequency of the Gold Coast line to a train every 15 minutes all the way to the terminal station will increase patronage. The Motorway over time will clog itself up anyway and give a time advantage to public transport. Cross River Rail funding must be focused on.

Station stop spacing and other trains on the line, not vehicle top speed, will determine how fast that train can get to Brisbane.
Perhaps they are considering retiring the tilt train and putting it on the GC line?

Poor Sunshine Coast commuters are going to be blowing black and blue over this announcement. The station spacing on the sunshine coast line is quite large, which should allow for very high speed services and give a real travel advantage over the car. There is no more worthwhile potential application of high speed or tilt trains than on the Sunshine Coast where the distance to be covered is great.

Rail revolution is really good, now let's see upgrades to get trains on all major lines every 15 minutes in the off peak. A lot of a commuter's journey time can be just waiting for a service to turn up! And let's see station feeder buses to most, if not all, stations so people can actually access their local station!

[#Metro]

No I didn't write this one, but after the things which happened to Kippa-ring...
Consistent pattern emerging- lots of rail promises (even in NSW), but unfunded, and well beyond election terms. Bligh will definetly not be premier in 20 years time and a project idea like this can easily be canceled on the election of a new incoming government, as has been borne out countless times before.

The Listener of Qld  Posted at 7:15 AM Today

    Anna Blight said, "Blah, blah, vote for me, blah, blah, I promise the sky, blah, blah, I won't deliver."

Comment 5 of 11

LOL!

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/high-speed-european-style-trains-to-run-from-brisbane-to-coasts-under-new-transport-plan-says-anna-bligh/comments-e6freoof-1225912143229

[Barbar]

Nice one Sue, must have been hard to keep a straight face while reporting this spin from Ms Bligh 

[ozbob]

This might be the impetus to start fixing up the track constraints and actually providing Sunshine Coast line a reasonable service now.

From the Brisbanetimes click here!

Beating the rat race at 160kmh

Beating the rat race at 160kmh
Sean Baumgart
August 31, 2010 - 7:19AM

Rail commuters will arrive into Brisbane at 160kmh as the State Government turns to high-speed trains to move the south-east corner's swelling population.

Premier Anna Bligh said commuters from the Gold and Sunshine coasts could reach Central station in about an hour under the Integrated Regional Transport Plan, which will be released today.

She said new high-speed trains would help get commuters out of cars and into public transport as the government aimed to double the share of public transport use from seven to 14 per cent in the next 20 years.

"We need to completely overhaul the way trains operate to achieve this level of growth and provide a level of service that is superior to driving a car," Ms Bligh said.

"We are working to deliver a rail revolution – a network that carries more people, more often, more quickly."

She acknowledged the plan was ambitious, but pointed to the success of Brisbane's busways as proof it was achievable.

"When we published our first integrated plan in 1997 to build dedicated busways in SEQ there wasn't a single kilometre of dedicated busway in the state," she said.

"Today we have 24km of dedicated busways in Brisbane, more than any other city in Australia and more under construction right now."

By 2031 the Brisbane area will be home to about 1.3 million people, the Gold Coast will house about 750,000 residents and nearly 500,000 people will call Sunshine Coast home, she said.

Transport shapes as an acute growing pain, but Ms Bligh said the European-style trains, which would run express from the Gold and Sunshine coasts direct to Brisbane city and reach speeds of up to 160km an hour, would be crucial to easing the pressure.

"If we link these cities by fast rail, we can avoid the need to expand existing motorways and encourage more people to travel by rail rather than road," she said.

"Currently, travelling by rail between Varsity Lakes and Central stations takes about one hour and 20 minutes, while driving the same distance could take upwards of an hour and a half in peak-hour traffic.

"We're looking at buying different types of trains with bathrooms for the comfort of passengers and tilt train technology to achieve faster travel times of about an hour between these cities."

Ms Bligh said delivery of Cross River Rail, currently being planned in a $25 million study jointly funded by the federal and state governments, would provide the catalyst for change in 2016.

"Investing in the mode that can carry the most people over the longest distances will help us deliver connections to communities throughout the south-east corner, cutting congestion and providing sustainable transport options," Ms Bligh said.

Ms Bligh said the target to increase mode share for public transport came out of the Growth Management Summit, held in March

[Derwan]

My comment:  We don't need speed.  We need FREQUENCY.

Why are we catering to the likes of the Gold and Sunshine Coasts when they're the ones who choose to live there and commute - when there are clear needs for additional capacity in the Brisbane area?

The government should be making big announcements on when we're moving to 15-minute off-peak frequencies, not when trains from the coast will make it to Brisbane a few minutes sooner.

My guess is that they've chosen the preferred supplier of the "New generation trains" and that they include the tilt-technology and have a top speed of 160km.  This announcement is just a spin-off from that.

[Derwan]

We need to aim for 40% ....

Doubling is a good start though! 

[#Metro]

15 minute trains with a supporting feeder bus and transfer network meeting every train
should be mandatory, bare minimum standard on ALL lines all the way to the very last station (minus Doomben, Tennyson and Rosewood).

For the (very long) Sunshine Coast line will need suggestions-- 15 minutes to how far along the line? Maroochydore, Nambour? Caboolture? Somewhere else?

[#Metro]

Doubling is a good start though!

Where does this 7% statistic come from? And for which area is it for? SEQ overall? Brisbane Statistical Area? The Gold Coast?
IIRC the Brisbane mode share is around 13% already.

[Stillwater]

Today's Sunshine Coast Daily newspaper also reports with breathless anticipation the prospect of of tilt train technology on commuter trains travelling at 160km/hr and offering a 'one-hour service' between Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast.  I suspect one train will be ordered, just before the next state election, and it will be rattled up and down the track from the Gold Coast to Nambour to give people a taste of what might be.  Anna Bligh will don a Casey Jones cap and hang out the driver's window for a photo opportunity, all the time shouting 'vote for me!'.  (How many marginal state electorates on the track between the NSW border and Gympie?)

QUESTIONS:

1)  Does not the existing Tilt Train operate now at an average speed of 66km/hr south of Maryborough due to track deficiencies and tight curves?

2)  With speed restrictions on some parts of the Sunshine Coast line down to 50km/hr (around Eudlo and Mooloolah) how will the advantage of the Tilt Train technology be utilised?

3)  Is it not the case that the Tilt Train has to 'switch off' its tilting capability to operate on the brisbane suburban network?  From where to where?

4)  Won't dogs and small children be swept into the vortex created as the fast trains from both coast whizz by at speeds of 160km/hr through narrow platform stations such as Eagle Junction?

There is a lot more the government needs to explain about this.  To me, this sounds like the manufactured 'good news' announcement you have on stand-by for when you feel your leadership is under threat.  I wonder what the Mini-Me Premier (Andrew Fraser) has to say about the cost of this initiative -- covering not just trains, but also the track upgrades required to take full advantage of the tilt technology.

What's the timing for delivery -- is it beyond 2031?  And just where will the one-hour service operate to and from -- Landsborough? Nambour?  Gympie North?

Yes, a lot more questions and it behoves Ms Bligh to provide the information now she has acheived her headline grab.

[Golliwog]

4)  Won't dogs and small children be swept into the vortex created as the fast trains from both coast whizz by at speeds of 160km/hr through narrow platform stations such as Eagle Junction?

I've never heard of that happening, do you have any stories or anything to back that up?

[#Metro]

The Sunshine Coast, not the Gold Coast, is a good candidate for this technology due to the large station spacing, but I agree that there is a lot of explaining to do. I have caught the tilt train and it was painfully slow- 100km/h which is slower than current services on sections of the Gold Coast line already.

Restrictions on the existing suburban network will mean the service will have to slow down. Capacity might also be reduced on the line as faster services would catch up and crash into slower all stations services if exclusive track or some way of safely passing is not thought about. Signaling might need an overhaul as well, as I can't imagine how you would safely see any signal clearly whooshing at 160 km/h or higher. It would just be a blur.

A lot of time could be cut by simply increasing the frequency- because much of the time is waiting time at the bus stop or train platform for the service to arrive. There are many times in Brisbane where I have waited 30 minutes-- if I had taken the car I would be home by the time the train pulled up!

The idea of tilt trains, in theory is good.

But there is no timeframe for the trains to be introduced and no funding.

Unfortunately, it looks like something the government thought about while they were having a shower this morning.
Light rail has been promised four times in Brisbane. Not a single piece of track has yet been laid. Kippa Ring has been promised endlessly, again not a single sleeper laid...

[#Metro]

4)  Won't dogs and small children be swept into the vortex created as the fast trains from both coast whizz by at speeds of 160km/hr through narrow platform stations such as Eagle Junction?

From personal experience, Gold Coast trains when they pass each other at high speed, there is a pressure wave. Its slight but it is there.

There are other considerations to think about:
Sonic boom upon tunnel exit and vibration and noise. I have some basic references googled too:

PREDICTION AND VALIDATION ON THE SONIC BOOM BY A HIGH-SPEED TRAIN ENTERING A TUNNEL
T. S. YOON, S. LEE, J. H. HWANG and D. H. LEE

IAAT (Institute of Advanced Aerospace Technology), School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, College of Engineering, Seoul National University, San 56-1 Shilim-Dong, Kwanak-Ku, Seoul, 151-742, Koreaf1


http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6WM3-457CSVN-3Y&_user=9441871&_coverDate=10%2F18%2F2001&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=search&_origin=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_searchStrId=1445583075&_rerunOrigin=google&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=9441871&md5=300fc0d7ac5b92dbef1f9e675e3b98b5&searchtype=a


Noise and vibration from high-speed trains - Google Books Result
Victor V. Krylov - 2001 - Technology & Engineering - 435 pages

http://books.google.com.au/books?id=2By9AgZYFLAC&pg=PA251&lpg=PA251&dq=High+Speed+train+sonic+boom&source=bl&ots=WXU8wabyc4&sig=_BpwmKT5QDqKtn3GFJC-l8z2clo&hl=en&ei=Z0R8TP6HB4GEvAPQwPnbAg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CCcQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=High%20Speed%20train%20sonic%20boom&f=false

[colinw]

4)  Won't dogs and small children be swept into the vortex created as the fast trains from both coast whizz by at speeds of 160km/hr through narrow platform stations such as Eagle Junction?

I've never heard of that happening, do you have any stories or anything to back that up?

Bollocks - I've stood on a platform in the UK while an Intercity 125 HST went through at 200 km/h.  There was no such problem provided you stand behind the yellow line.

[Stillwater]

My comment about dogs and small children was a tongue-in-cheek reference to the need to consider passenger safety as these express trains rattle through stations where platforms are crowded with people waiting for the 'slow' train trundling behind.

[colinw]

That article in the Courier-Mail made coffee come out my nose when I snorted with derision.  Posting this after cleaning my keyboard ...

Point 1.  160 km/h is NOT high speed rail, and a 1 hour journey time to the Gold Coast is perfectly achievable with the current trains if a sensible average speed could be achieved on the Beenleigh to Brisbane section.  Perth - Mandurah does it quite happily with a 130km/h top speed, because those trains have Gold Coast line like conditions all the way and don't have to wade through 40km/h of speed restrictions & all stops suburbans.

Point 2.  This is a distraction from the current issues, which are correction of infrastructure deficiencies and making the current system function properly.

Point 3.  The public don't want SPEED first, they want FREQUENCY.  Until such time as the trains run every 15 minutes offpeak on all major lines, and at least half hourly on minor ones like Doomben & Tennyson, there is no point promising shiny things like tilt trains to the coast.

Point 4.  2031 is way to long to wait for a sensible Sunshine Coast timetable.  We need hourly IMU standard trains up there NOW!!!!

This is getting more & more like NSW.  Make grandiose rail promises dated way off in the future beyond the electoral horizon, change stories every few months as the media loses interest, and never actually have to deliver anything.  Meanwhile pots of money continue to appear to build road projects, even if they are $1.66 billion black holes like Clem7.  Any current Government promising something in 21 years time is not credible.  By 2031 Anna Bligh will be just as relevant to Queensland as Joh Bjelke-Petersen, Mike Ahern or Wayne Goss are to us today.

cheers,
Colin

[colinw]

My comment about dogs and small children was a tongue-in-cheek reference to the need to consider passenger safety as these express trains rattle through stations where platforms are crowded with people waiting for the 'slow' train trundling behind.

No worries, I missed the "tongue in cheek" aspect of the post.  Sorry about that.

[Golliwog]

My comment about dogs and small children was a tongue-in-cheek reference to the need to consider passenger safety as these express trains rattle through stations where platforms are crowded with people waiting for the 'slow' train trundling behind.

They already have express trains going through some crowded platforms at high speeds. IMO, people need to learn to respect the yellow line as its there for a reason and you won't have any problems with trains provided you stay behind it.

[colinw]

From The Gold Coast Bulletin, Click Here.

The feedback against the article is typical of the extreme negativity often seen in the GC paper.  A pro-rail voice is needed.  

Coast rail on right track, wrong timeframe

Andrew MacDonald   |  September 1st, 2010

FEDERAL LNP member for McPherson Karen Andrews has given in-principle support to the State Government's plan to link Coolangatta to a flagged express train service between Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

Nevertheless, she has labelled the 20-year timetable for the implementation of the new route 'unacceptable'.

Ms Andrews, who as part of her election campaign for the seat promised to take the fight for a rail link to Canberra, yesterday said improved transport on the southern Gold Coast should be a priority.
Have your say on the feedback form below


''It's certainly good to see that the State Government has acknowledged there is a severe lack of transport infrastructure on our southern Gold Coast,'' she said.

''It is something I personally have been talking about for a long time and it is very well known.

''There's probably not enough detail for us to make up our minds as to the quality of the announcement but it gives us an opportunity, it would seem, to put submissions as to what's needed on the southern Gold Coast.''

Ms Andrews said she planned to continue fighting to have the improved transport services implemented on the Gold Coast earlier once the federal election had been resolved.

''It has to be a priority - 2031 is just not acceptable,'' she said.

''They've given themselves a 21-year window to deliver this, so in all likelihood the members of parliament who are there now aren't going to be there to be accountable.''

While Ms Andrews indicated support for some elements of the Bligh government's scheme, her LNP colleague in the Gold Coast seat of Moncrieff, Steven Ciobo, was more dismissive.

''I like the idea of a high-speed rail service between the Gold Coast and Brisbane but frankly Anna Bligh and the Queensland Labor Party's announcement of this high speed service, some 20-plus years from now, isn't worth the air that she used to make the announcement,'' he said.

''It's on a wing and a prayer, it's on the 'never-never'. It's big in razzle-dazzle but, as usual, the execution is completely non-existent.

[ozbob]

I did an interview this morning on ABC Gold Coast FM radio breakfast, host Peter Scott on the draft plan. Was able to give proper balance and a positive input.

Thanks ABC Gold Coast!

[colinw]

Saw you on TV last night Bob.  A good, and very positive sound bite. 

[Stillwater]

Rachel Nolan was interviewed on ABC Sunshine Coast this morning, talking up the high-speed rail plan.  Fiona Simpson, the Opposition transport spokesperson, said Connecting SEQ 2031 was an 'over the horizon' document with no real plan or budget to achieve the objectives.  SC Mayor, Bob Abbott, said he would like to see an integrated transport plan for the Sunshine Coast that also included light rail and better bus connections.  The Minister was sympathetic to the idea, saying her government was working productively with the council to get more out of the system, including having dedicated busways and buses with technology to trip traffic lights green or get in front of the queue at intersections.

Rachel Nolan said she had recently denied a request from the Member for Gympie, David Gibson, for an extra return service to Gympie North.  At a cost of $500,000 a year, it was too expensive to provide the service, given the current patronage on the line.

You win some, you lose some.

[somebody]

Point 3.  The public don't want SPEED first, they want FREQUENCY.  Until such time as the trains run every 15 minutes offpeak on all major lines, and at least half hourly on minor ones like Doomben & Tennyson, there is no point promising shiny things like tilt trains to the coast.

I think they want both.  I would agree that a 15 minute frequency is the first goal, where it is achievable, but there is a need for full time express services to Caboolture and Ipswich once the frequency is sorted.  Seems that the idea of "shiny things to the coast" has a lot of appeal in some quarters, but it is much like Henry Ford giving a faster horse rather than the motor car.

Fiona Simpson, the Opposition transport spokesperson, said Connecting SEQ 2031 was an 'over the horizon' document with no real plan or budget to achieve the objectives. 

I think Fiona Simpson is on to something there.

[colinw]

Rachel Nolan said she had recently denied a request from the Member for Gympie, David Gibson, for an extra return service to Gympie North.  At a cost of $500,000 a year, it was too expensive to provide the service, given the current patronage on the line.

The Gympie North service bugs me for a number of reasons.

First, it really is only catering for a very limited "peak hour long distance commute to Brisbane" market.  There is no attempt to provide any kind of usable Brisbane to Gympie service, nor is there anything resembling a usable service beyond Nambour.  At the very least, once Nambour is fixed, we should have more frequent trains to Cooroy & possibly Pomona.

Second, I feel that Gympie is beyond the natural limits of suburban / interurban style service, and maybe the focus should be more on providing a V/Line type intercity service with better amenities.  Over the coming decade or two I would like to see a true intercity service, with matching facilities, develop to serve Gympie & Maryborough.

Third, I really dislike that North Gympie station out there in the sticks.  It may be fine for through long distance trains, but to service Gympie I'd much rather see the wires go up around via Banks Pocket to the town centre station, with local buses connecting to there.  Shuttle buses to through NCL services at Gympie North are fine, but Gympie terminators really should loop through to the town centre.  If timed right there is also an opportunity to develop a tourist market here as well, with cross-platform transfer to the Mary Valley Heritage Railway steam trains & railcars.  The old Gympie yard is more than big enough to accomodate a terminating station, the heritage railway, and some kind of park & ride facility.

Regarding service frequency, a truly useful Gympie intercity service would, in my opinion, consist of about 6 trains a day at about 3 hourly intervals.

One final thought. Maybe electric rollingstock isn't the way to go for these longer distance services.  A V/Line style DMU would permit easy extension to Gympie town centre without having to electrify, and could also provide Lockyer Valley (Laidley / Gatton) services.  DMUs may also be the way to go for Flagstone / Bromelton / Beaudesert?

cheers,
Colin

[somebody]

But why would you run a DMU under the wires?  If the line branches, it's trivial to add wires to 1-2km of track.

[colinw]

Just chucking ideas around. That Gympie North station really bugs me, because old Gympie is so conveniently located.  I'm sure a service to the centre of Gympie, without having to mess around with a shuttle bus, would do better.  Particularly if it was run several times a day as I suggest.

[Sunbus610]

Maroochydore train hope derailed
1 September 2010 - Sunshine Coast Daily

THE Sunshine Coast's hopes of taking a train from Maroochydore to Brisbane have been pushed out to beyond 2031 "at least" and possibly placed in the never, ever basket.

The State Government's newly released draft Integrated Regional Transport Plan – Connecting SEQ 2031 – adds 10 years to the timeframe for the completion of the rail link between Beerwah and Maroochydore to beyond 2031.

Read more HERE

[colinw]

If the plan has truly abandoned the idea of going to Maroochydore, that is disgusting!  Particularly after the recent Maroochydore Station study that identified the correct location for the station. It needs to go all the way to Maroochydore, not stop short.  And that council transport spokesperson is completely missing the point that this is part of a region wide rail system, not just a local link.

CAMCOS needs to be built fully within 10-12 years, not deferred endlessly.  And when it is built, it needs to go all the way to Maroochydore, and allow for extension onwards to Noosa and as a loop to Nambour via the Petrie Creek corridor.

[Arnz]

Looks like the Maroochydore line has been Red-cliffed  .

We don't need super duper Maglevs, we need better frequency and more trains with toilet/baby change facilities. 

Considering the government's contempt of Sunshine Coast residents (as evidenced by the Hospital delays, most trains not provided with toilets, and so forth).

[#Metro]

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Gympie+north+station&sll=-26.201192,152.698975&sspn=0.067616,0.142994&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Gympie+North+Station,+Queensland,+Australia&ll=-26.187887,152.673247&spn=0.008453,0.02605&t=h&z=16

Third, I really dislike that North Gympie station out there in the sticks.  It may be fine for through long distance trains, but to service Gympie I'd much rather see the wires go up around via Banks Pocket to the town centre station, with local buses connecting to there.  Shuttle buses to through NCL services at Gympie North are fine, but Gympie terminators really should loop through to the town centre.  If timed right there is also an opportunity to develop a tourist market here as well, with cross-platform transfer to the Mary Valley Heritage Railway steam trains & railcars.  The old Gympie yard is more than big enough to accomodate a terminating station, the heritage railway, and some kind of park & ride facility.

I agree. The tracks are already there!
Though Sunshine Coast commuters need services as a matter of urgency.

[Stillwater]

The Sunshine Coast Daily makes the point that the CAMCOS vision has been delayed until after 2031, if at all.  And Fiona Simpson has a point also.  While it is entirely appropriate to have a 'vision document' going out 20 years, what about the here and now -- the next few years for which the Bligh Government has a franchise.  Forget, for a moment, what Ms Bligh and Ms Nolan hope a future government might do.  It seems to me that, while we should offer every encouragement to the government for its vision, we should continue to hold it accountable for its action, or lack of action, during the period of time it has been elected to reign over us.

Looking at the draft Connecting SEQ 2031 document, it is hard to read the tea leaves for what exactly will be done, and when.  What has happened about previous assurances on construction timetables, such as Paul Lucas' statement that CAMCOS would be built to Caloundra by 2015 and to Maroochydore by 2020-21?  That statement has never been retracted, it has just been snowed by the Connecting SEQ 2031 document.

Go to page 111 of the document and to Map 9.15 in particular.  There you will see a representation of the CAMCOS railway line to Kawana ONLY by 2031.  The plan seems to be -- but this is not stated -- to feed the coastal bus services into Kawana.  A service to Noosa is so far off that the populace there will die of the consequences of global warming before they have an opportunity to catch a train to Brisbane.

[Stillwater]

The map showing the Kawana terminus by 2031 is on page 210, not 211.

[#Metro]

I will look at the document in detail later. Just had a skim read for now.
I really cannot believe what I am reading. It's just amazing. Its like someone switched a light on.

It had better be delivered! 

Sunshine Coast is a PT abysm. It has the lowest mode share of all the SEQ councils. Brisbane has 3 times the mode share of this.
Public transport, 3.6%

[somebody]

While I see the value in the Maroochydore branch, the Gold Coast line doesn't have an equivalent branch and works well with bus feeders + park and rides.  There is no reason that I can think of why it couldn't work with the Nambour line.

[colinw]

True, however if you look at the two coasts there is a big difference in distance and quality of road links between the railway line and the coastal strip.

Furthermore, there is a clear need for a line to the coastal part of the Gold Coast, hence the light rail project to fill in for the missing and unachievable heavy rail.

Finally, a corridor for heavy rail right to the heart of the heavily populated part of the Sunshine Coast exists, and we darn well should use it.  Connecting buses to the Nambour line would be a 3rd rate solution in comparison.

I'd be contented to see Beerwah to Caloundra get up & running by 2016 or so.  Once that first section of line is in, the momentum to extend it properly should be unstoppable (even if it takes a while).

We had trains to Helensvale in 1996, how about trains to Caloundra in 2016! 

[somebody]

Ok, but duplication to Landsborough and a half hourly frequency that far with buses meeting every train would go some way to getting the momentum going.

With the gold coast, the motorway is near and to the west of the rail line.  On the Sunshine Coast the rail line is far to the west of the Bruce Hwy.  So I see what you are getting at here.  It would probably promote a lot more people to commute that far.

[Stillwater]

Yes, that's it.  While the government should be shunted towards planning and implementing CAMCOS in a realistic timeframe, what can be done with the existing heavy rail line to Nambour and beyond to boost PT services on the Sunshine Coast?  Work with what we have got in the short-term -- and improve it -- without losing sight of what is possible long-term.  The government should not be allowed to feel comfortable that people will become so dazzled by what could be (high-speed rail to Maroochydore) that it can get away with doing nothing, or doing little, in the meantime.  Cranking up the Alliance for a start on the Beerburrum-Landsborough duplication (as promised) would be a good move, as would be sorting out stabling options and car parking at Nambour station.  Surely those things are within the boon of government before 2031; and, hopefully, much sooner.

[#Metro]

Somebody's & Colinw's ideas are complimentary.

Somebody's idea can be done very fast- buses can be put on very quickly and cheaply.
It's far from ideal, but it is a stop-gap measure to buy time and provide at least some service better than what is there now.

In the longer term, Colinw's idea can be done, but it will take time to lay track and do the planning and all the engineering works.
It takes time- up to a decade to get these things planned and done- The first serious report for Gold Coast Light rail came about in 1998, its 2010 and a single piece of track has not been laid yet.

I see the real emergency being CRR. The time frame for that is extremely tight, the money has not yet been found and a capacity crisis looming on that line.