RAIL - Back On Track Forum

It was forwarded to me direct by a media outlet, extract from a live news bulletin.

Sent to all outlets:

25th October 2014

Re: Bus Reform Sweeps Auckland, Falling Patronage Sweeps Brisbane

Greetings,

It appears that Lord Mayor Quirk is still locked into a direct service model for the bus network.  ( http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=9045.msg147956#msg147956 )

Lord Mayor, no one is suggesting that all buses will stop running direct to the CBD, far from it.  Simply there needs to be better connections, coverage and frequency of services.

This will be achieved by re-casting the bus network along the lines proposed by TransLink in 2013.  This will in turn drive very significant patronage increases, it will make the public transport truly integrated.  It will provide a basis for proper fare reform.

Sadly, the Lord Mayor's position further highlights why planning for public transport needs to be removed from Brisbane City Council  and properly given to the domain of TransLink.  Unless Brisbane Transport is allowed to move to a connected network framework, there is no way they will be competitive for the tendering process.

It is time that petty political serfdoms stop over-riding sound policy.  Why should every bus region other than Brisbane suffer cuts and lack of span hours to prop up the  Brisbane's bus region duplication, waste and air!

Food for thought.

Best wishes
Robert

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track http://backontrack.org

Quote from: ozbob on October 24, 2014, 04:04:37 AM
^

Sent to all outlets:

24th October 2014

Re: Bus Reform Sweeps Auckland, Falling Patronage Sweeps Brisbane

Greetings,

Ok.  How to sort it.

Brisbane Transport staff to sit down with TransLink bus staff.  Go through the 2013 bus review, fine tune it in a cooperative way.

Roll out with a proper education campaign, with high quality service maps.

No need to waste more money on more reviews.

Simple.

Best wishes
Robert

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track http://backontrack.org

Well well well... Q & A
Note that there are two interchange types, major interchanges (think heavy infrastructure) and MINOR interchanges where normal streets cross at an intersection... don't need to spend big $$$...

Sent to all outlets:

26th October 2014

Re: Bus Reform Sweeps Auckland, Falling Patronage Sweeps Brisbane

Greetings,

Interesting video.  It again demonstrates how to do public transport network reform and the benefits.  Something urgently needed for Brisbane. You should take the time to view this, particularly our Lord Mayor.

(Auckland Transport)
New Network Q&A >>

Best wishes
Robert

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track http://backontrack.org

Quote from: ozbob on October 25, 2014, 03:39:32 AM
Sent to all outlets:

25th October 2014

Re: Bus Reform Sweeps Auckland, Falling Patronage Sweeps Brisbane

Greetings,

It appears that Lord Mayor Quirk is still locked into a direct service model for the bus network.  ( http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=9045.msg147956#msg147956 )

Lord Mayor, no one is suggesting that all buses will stop running direct to the CBD, far from it.  Simply there needs to be better connections, coverage and frequency of services.

This will be achieved by re-casting the bus network along the lines proposed by TransLink in 2013.  This will in turn drive very significant patronage increases, it will make the public transport truly integrated.  It will provide a basis for proper fare reform.

Sadly, the Lord Mayor's position further highlights why planning for public transport needs to be removed from Brisbane City Council  and properly given to the domain of TransLink.  Unless Brisbane Transport is allowed to move to a connected network framework, there is no way they will be competitive for the tendering process.

It is time that petty political serfdoms stop over-riding sound policy.  Why should every bus region other than Brisbane suffer cuts and lack of span hours to prop up the  Brisbane's bus region duplication, waste and air!

Food for thought.

Best wishes
Robert

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track http://backontrack.org

Quote from: ozbob on October 24, 2014, 04:04:37 AM
^

Sent to all outlets:

24th October 2014

Re: Bus Reform Sweeps Auckland, Falling Patronage Sweeps Brisbane

Greetings,

Ok.  How to sort it.

Brisbane Transport staff to sit down with TransLink bus staff.  Go through the 2013 bus review, fine tune it in a cooperative way.

Roll out with a proper education campaign, with high quality service maps.

No need to waste more money on more reviews.

Simple.

Best wishes
Robert

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track http://backontrack.org

Sent to all outlets:

27th October 2014

Bus Reform: Our sister city can see the benefits. Why can't we?

Greetings,

Our Lord Mayor's position on bus reform is starting to look unreasonable.

The Auckland's mayor's bus and rail reform will revolutionise the way Aucklanders get around. Brisbane??

Auckland New Bus Network: --->

Our map of BCC's bus network: CheckYourBus Map  ---> http://tiny.cc/checkyourbus

Developers, businesses and residents wanting to avoid investing or living in BCC's bus black spots will find our map useful. Anyone can see what their local BCC bus service quality actually is. Thin green lines mean that your service is not coming soon and will cause a wait up to one hour. Thin blue lines mean the service exists briefly in the am and pm peaks only.

How is our map useful? Let's look at Alice and Bob in a fictional example:

Alice is a Rosalie resident. Bob rings Alice for a coffee and lunch in Brisbane's Queen Street Mall. Alice agrees to meet Bob and runs to her local bus stop. She looks at the BCC bus timetable. The BCC bus only takes 15 minutes to get her to the CBD and she can take a 475 or 476. But what is this? A bus has already left and the next one is in one hour! The total journey time will take 15 minutes to travel PLUS a 1 hour wait just to travel 3 km into the Brisbane CBD!

A whole 75 minutes of journey later (60 minutes waiting, plus 15 minutes actually on the bus), Alice reads that the Brisbane Lord Mayor is anti-bus connections. She doesn't like the idea of connections either. The idea of her spending a few minutes changing vehicles doesn't appeal to her. She tells Bob what a horrible day it was waiting 60 minutes for the 475 bus and how irritating it is to schedule her life around a bus timetable. Alice says she is thinking about getting a car.

However, Bob says that under bus reform, there would have been money to upgrade Alice's service to half hourly. That money would have come from stopping some, but not all, buses at interchanges before they drive all the way into the Brisbane CBD. Alice would have saved a full half an hour on her trip. And they'd be having lunch at midday when they wanted to, instead of almost 1:30pm in the afternoon.

Has the penny dropped at BCC yet? The current network is a restriction on liberty and freedom. There are many other examples across the BCC's bus network. Yeronga springs to mind. Neither BCC nor TransLink have published a map of the entire bus network. Perhaps a bit too revealing hey? If you are anti-connections, you are also anti-simple, affordable bus service with buses always coming soon. Auckland's mayor can see the benefits, a pity Brisbane's can't.  If the bus isn't coming soon it is not useful as it could be.

Only genuine reform of rail and bus networks, together with fare reform will guarantee abundant and low cost public transport for all.

Best wishes
Robert

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track http://backontrack.org

References:

1. Bus Reform: Auckland City Council versus Brisbane City Council http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=11016.0

2. 'Transferring' can be good for you, and good for your city http://www.humantransit.org/2009/04/why-transferring-is-good-for-you-and-good-for-your-city.html

3. Auckland's New Public Transport Network

Check this out! MASSIVE duplication on Coronation Drive. This is from midday between 12.00 noon and 12.59pm.
Now you know why fares are so high. 26 buses per hour = 60 minutes divided by 26 = a bus every 2.3 minutes during the middle of the day or around 1600 - 2000 pphd. That's a massive amount of air going to the CBD.

This could all be replaced with 412 and 400 Centenary BUZ operating superbuses at 10 min intervals each - (6 bus/hour x [412s] x 150 pax + 6 bus/hour x [400s] x 150 pax = 1800 pphd capacity.)

There are actually 14 different buses (didn't include the school bus) going along this. And this is during the off peak. Probs even more in peak.

http://jp.translink.com.au/travel-information/network-information/stops-and-stations/stop/001951/timetable#12.00pm



---
12.00pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.00pm
Inbound   415   Indooroopilly, West Taringa, Taringa, Toowong, City   

12.00pm
Inbound   425   Kenmore Woods, Chapel Hill, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.03pm
Inbound   445   Fig Tree Pocket, Lone Pine, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.05pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA   

12.05pm
Inbound   454   Riverhills, Mt Ommaney Shops, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City
   
12.08pm
Inbound   411   Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Auchenflower, Milton, City   

12.10pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.18pm
Inbound   460   Heathwood, Forest Lake, Mt Ommaney, Indooroopilly, City   

12.20pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.20pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA   

12.21pm
Inbound   453   Mt Ommaney, Jindalee, Indooroopilly, City   

12.28pm
Inbound   417   Long Pocket, Indooroopilly, Toowong, Coronation Dr, City   

12.28pm
Inbound   430   Fig Tree Pock,Kenmore,Indooroopilly,Cultural Centre,City
   
12.30pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.30pm
Inbound   425   Kenmore Woods, Chapel Hill, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.35pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA
   
12.35pm
Inbound   454   Riverhills, Mt Ommaney Shops, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.38pm
Inbound   411   Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Auchenflower, Milton, City   

12.40pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.43pm
Inbound   433   Kenmore South, Indooroopilly, Toowong, Coronation Dr, City   

12.48pm
Inbound   460   Heathwood, Forest Lake, Mt Ommaney, Indooroopilly, City   

12.50pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.50pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA   

12.51pm
Inbound   453   Mt Ommaney, Jindalee, Indooroopilly, City

12.58pm
Inbound   435   Brookfield, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, Indooroopilly, City   

The other problem with Coro Drive is that the spread of services to the different city terminii is hopeless.  For example around 4:50pm inbound there will be most QSBS routes in about 5-10 minutes and most Adelaide St routes instead of spreading them around.

Also Coro Drive in Milton & Auchenflower is quite busy outbound in the am peak and vv.  This is something that Translink seem to forget at times particuarly with the trains.

Before the removal of P88, that figure actually stood at 30bph, or a bus every 2 minutes (apparently). By comparison, drive 10 minutes down the road to West Taringa and you have a frequency of 1bph. I think it is also worth pointing out that between 9:00pm and 9:59pm inbound, there is still 15bph heading to the CBD, while in many parts of western Brisbane the last bus has either gone, or is about to go to bed (415, 417, 430, 433, 435, 445, 468).

The criminal thing is that there is no capacity issue on this corridor at all. Most of the buses at best carry half seated loads, even the BUZes like the 412 and 444. 444 is probably the only one which might carry more than this. You could halve the number of buses going down Coro today and put them all on to buses and there still would be no capacity issue. In terms of duplication, Coro Drive is the most duplicated corridor in Brisbane. Corridors like Ipswich Rd (13bph), Old Cleveland Rd (17bph) and and even Lutwyche Rd (24bph, including the 330) are less duplicated Coro Drive. Remember there's a railway line which runs right beside Coro too (a luxury the other three corridors don't have)!

I do know the 444 outbound around 7:45 will have most seats taken leaving CC and can leave people behind at Roma St.  However there is plenty of capacity on the other 4xx routes at the same time its just people dont want to make the effort of going elsewhere to get them.  I think if the 453 etc ran outbound through CC in am peak it would even things out.

Quote from: LD Transit on October 28, 2014, 07:03:09 AM
Check this out! MASSIVE duplication on Coronation Drive. This is from midday between 12.00 noon and 12.59pm.
Now you know why fares are so high. 26 buses per hour = 60 minutes divided by 26 = a bus every 2.3 minutes during the middle of the day or around 1600 - 2000 pphd. That's a massive amount of air going to the CBD.

This could all be replaced with 412 and 400 Centenary BUZ operating superbuses at 10 min intervals each - (6 bus/hour x [412s] x 150 pax + 6 bus/hour x [400s] x 150 pax = 1800 pphd capacity.)

There are actually 14 different buses (didn't include the school bus) going along this. And this is during the off peak. Probs even more in peak.

http://jp.translink.com.au/travel-information/network-information/stops-and-stations/stop/001951/timetable#12.00pm



---
12.00pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.00pm
Inbound   415   Indooroopilly, West Taringa, Taringa, Toowong, City   

12.00pm
Inbound   425   Kenmore Woods, Chapel Hill, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.03pm
Inbound   445   Fig Tree Pocket, Lone Pine, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.05pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA   

12.05pm
Inbound   454   Riverhills, Mt Ommaney Shops, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City
   
12.08pm
Inbound   411   Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Auchenflower, Milton, City   

12.10pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.18pm
Inbound   460   Heathwood, Forest Lake, Mt Ommaney, Indooroopilly, City   

12.20pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.20pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA   

12.21pm
Inbound   453   Mt Ommaney, Jindalee, Indooroopilly, City   

12.28pm
Inbound   417   Long Pocket, Indooroopilly, Toowong, Coronation Dr, City   

12.28pm
Inbound   430   Fig Tree Pock,Kenmore,Indooroopilly,Cultural Centre,City
   
12.30pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.30pm
Inbound   425   Kenmore Woods, Chapel Hill, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.35pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA
   
12.35pm
Inbound   454   Riverhills, Mt Ommaney Shops, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.38pm
Inbound   411   Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Auchenflower, Milton, City   

12.40pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.43pm
Inbound   433   Kenmore South, Indooroopilly, Toowong, Coronation Dr, City   

12.48pm
Inbound   460   Heathwood, Forest Lake, Mt Ommaney, Indooroopilly, City   

12.50pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.50pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA   

12.51pm
Inbound   453   Mt Ommaney, Jindalee, Indooroopilly, City

12.58pm
Inbound   435   Brookfield, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, Indooroopilly, City

Where were you that time when James, a couple others and myself were having a go at all the duplication along the Coro Drive, Gympie Road and RBWH-Valley corridors?

We're going to the ci-ty! We're going to the ci-ty! We're going to the ci-ty!

Quote from: HappyTrainGuy on October 28, 2014, 23:01:08 PMWhere were you that time when James, a couple others and myself were having a go at all the duplication along the Coro Drive, Gympie Road and RBWH-Valley corridors?

We're going to the ci-ty! We're going to the ci-ty! We're going to the ci-ty!

No photos from you HTG? Someone seems a bit jealous that the waste going to my major shopping centre is bigger than yours.

Sent to all outlets:

29th October 2014

' I don't want to transfer = I want high, cost explosive and unaffordable fares '

Greetings,

The Lord Mayor's stance on the bus network is starting to look unreasonable.

Ever wonder why fares are so expensive? Take a look at this image. It is from a Coronation Drive bus stop. This is what happens when you insist on running every bus to the Brisbane CBD, like a taxi.

There are 14 different bus routes going to this bus stop, all duplicating each other, all with their own driver which all needs to be paid for from higher fares. This works out to be 26 buses per hour along Coronation Drive in the off peak when demand is much lower. That is a bus every 2.3 minutes, far in excess of what is required. For comparison, a general BUZ route might have 4 or 6 buses per hour at most.

Even if every single one of these buses were absolutely 100% full, they would fill just over 1.5 - 2 trains. The idea that trains don't have capacity to take the load of multiple buses is a myth.

Stop 9



The statement 'I don't want to transfer' is mathematically equivalent to 'I want high, cost-explosive and unaffordable fares for everyone'. Politicians may not want to say it like that, but that's what it is.

A lot of air is being carried into the Brisbane CBD and we are all paying for it. Under bus reform, these 'air' buses would be put to useful service in the suburbs. The use of smart connections will see greater liberty and freedom for passengers and a more equitable distribution of high frequency bus services across the entire city. Running the bus network 'taxi style' inevitably leads to 'taxi style' fare levels.

Only genuine reform of rail and bus networks, together with fare reform will guarantee abundant and low cost public transport for all.

Don't miss the bus!

Best wishes
Robert

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track http://backontrack.org

References:

References
http://jp.translink.com.au/travel-information/network-information/stops-and-stations/stop/001951/timetable#12.00pm

Train Capacity Calculation
26 buses x 65 pax capacity = 1690 pax (A). Capacity of train = 1000 pax (B). Divide (A) by (B) = 1.69 trains.

* School route was not included in the calculation as this is not generally accessible to the public.

Buses at stop ID 001951, Coronation Drive

12.00pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.00pm
Inbound   415   Indooroopilly, West Taringa, Taringa, Toowong, City   

12.00pm
Inbound   425   Kenmore Woods, Chapel Hill, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.03pm
Inbound   445   Fig Tree Pocket, Lone Pine, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.05pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA   

12.05pm
Inbound   454   Riverhills, Mt Ommaney Shops, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City
   
12.08pm
Inbound   411   Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Auchenflower, Milton, City   

12.10pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.18pm
Inbound   460   Heathwood, Forest Lake, Mt Ommaney, Indooroopilly, City   

12.20pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.20pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA   

12.21pm
Inbound   453   Mt Ommaney, Jindalee, Indooroopilly, City   

12.28pm
Inbound   417   Long Pocket, Indooroopilly, Toowong, Coronation Dr, City   

12.28pm
Inbound   430   Fig Tree Pock,Kenmore,Indooroopilly,Cultural Centre,City
   
12.30pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.30pm
Inbound   425   Kenmore Woods, Chapel Hill, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.35pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA
   
12.35pm
Inbound   454   Riverhills, Mt Ommaney Shops, Indooroopilly, Toowong, City   

12.38pm
Inbound   411   Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Auchenflower, Milton, City   

12.40pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.43pm
Inbound   433   Kenmore South, Indooroopilly, Toowong, Coronation Dr, City   

12.48pm
Inbound   460   Heathwood, Forest Lake, Mt Ommaney, Indooroopilly, City   

12.50pm
Inbound   412   St Lucia South, Uni of Qld, St Lucia, Toowong, Milton, City   

12.50pm
Inbound   444   Moggill, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, RomaSt, Cultural Centre, GoMA   

12.51pm
Inbound   453   Mt Ommaney, Jindalee, Indooroopilly, City

12.58pm
Inbound   435   Brookfield, Kenmore, Chapel Hill, Indooroopilly, City 

OC Road in the afternoons between 3.30-4pm,too many buses,some of them not in servicedriving past the outbound stop on OC Rd outside the old Myers building near corner of Cavendish Rd ,Coorparoo ,I see 1 or 2 buses at that stop,today there were 3 there!I'm always ready to stop in case a bus wants to pull out from that stop but it's not always safe to stop there, it is a very busy road

Quote from: kazzac on October 30, 2014, 19:16:21 PM
OC Road in the afternoons between 3.30-4pm,too many buses,some of them not in servicedriving past the outbound stop on OC Rd outside the old Myers building near corner of Cavendish Rd ,Coorparoo ,I see 1 or 2 buses at that stop,today there were 3 there!I'm always ready to stop in case a bus wants to pull out from that stop but it's not always safe to stop there, it is a very busy road

I think one of the major reasons that there are so many buses at that stop is the light sequence at OC Rd and Main Ave. It lets any 200's move through followed by the busway services. All these buses then get stopped by the next set of lights at Fifth Avenue which bunches them up further (unless they are speeding, but they get caught by the next set of lights anyway). This is just the normal services, add any of the other 2xx or rocket buses into the mix and you can get up to 5 at the Myer building. Also, the 209 and 222 always seem to travel together outbound along the eastern busway (I can never tell if its because of the timetable or late/early running).

2 facebook posts today

QuoteI would like to suggest that Route 66 is more frequent at the start of the year/semester (before the census date).
Today I waited with about 30 others at Southbank station. Three 66 busses passed, and were too full, and many people were unable to board. This was between 11am and 11:40am, so this was not the morning peak hour.
I don't know if the next bus had any more room, as by this stage I gave up and caught a bus to Wooloongabba and caught the 29.
As well as this, students had formed a line to indicate whose turn it was to board the next bus first. This was becoming crowded and confusing when people lined up for other services.
It is likely that a lot of newer students unfamiliar with the area/bus-ways would not have known to do this. And so I think increasing the frequency in the first month of Uni would be something to consider next year.

QuoteAnyone who uses buses 66, 330, 333 or 340 between Roma Street and RBWH, just received this reply from TransLink that had the following -
"I am concerned to hear the feedback about your recent experiences where frequent overcrowding was experienced on bus routes 66,330,333,340 and I apologise for any frustration this may have caused.
Given your feedback indicates there is severe occurrences of overcrowding on these services, I have requested a thorough investigation of the matter."
Let's hope this investigation shows up what we all know - we need more buses on these routes during peak hour!

uhhhm were translink not warned 12 months ago about overcrowding on start of uni periods for the uni routes?.....seems like these guys (translink) just like to play dumb and continually act like they were just told yesterday.....

Quote
uhhhm were translink not warned 12 months ago about overcrowding on start of uni periods for the uni routes?.....seems like these guys (translink) just like to play dumb and continually act like they were just told yesterday.....

The communications are outsourced to a company run by staff who probably have no idea what PT is and how it runs. Hence generic answers etc.

Quote from: techblitz on March 05, 2015, 23:12:08 PM
2 facebook posts today

uhhhm were translink not warned 12 months ago about overcrowding on start of uni periods for the uni routes?.....seems like these guys (translink) just like to play dumb and continually act like they were just told yesterday.....

TransLink and BCC have known about this stuff going on for years, it has been happening every year since I came to Uni, which is now a number of years. But we have a snowball's chance in hell of seeing the timetable changed (no real change in 4 years for Indro buses and over 10 for the 411), so in the end you've just got to adjust your travel patterns appropriately.

It is a PITA, absolutely, but in the end that's how I deal with it. When I went to measure the fullness of buses along the Swann Rd corridor, I actually got multiple people coming up to me telling how frustrating it was seeing full bus after full bus. After a couple of weeks it settles down and there are only a few 'trouble services' which remain an issue (e.g. the 9:38am 428 - always 5 to 10 minutes late!) and people can fit on buses again.

I catch a 411 which arrives at UQ about 15 minutes after 9am classes start (all mine start at 10am) - no overcrowding problems even at this time of year.

The old thread on the 2012/13 SEQ bus network review.

Shows how good plans get wrecked ..

Quote from: James on November 19, 2013, 09:49:50 AMSome of you may remember the campaign run to save the 116 during Stage 3 of the bus review (the one involving the knitted stuff). Well I  on board the 116 today. I would ask for opinions on the service, but unfortunately there were no pax on board past Moorooka shops.

Another route for the chopping block...

Quote from: ozbob on October 29, 2014, 02:41:31 AMThis works out to be 26 buses per hour along Coronation Drive in the off peak when demand is much lower.

26 services between 12pm and 1pm from Wesley Hospital inbound then, the same 26 services (at slightly different times) between 12pm and 1pm today, some 8 years later. This shows 2 things at completely different ends of the spectrum, but are interconnected so closely:
1- a complete neglect to add buses in line with population growth;
2- a complete neglect to truncate services along an over-saturated corridor.

But save our 435 I hear them cry, you know, the one that already terminates at Indooroopilly on weekends

BIG debate about potential truncation of Route 444 

Quote from: ozbob on April 26, 2022, 13:12:19 PM

Quote from: James on November 19, 2013, 09:49:50 AMSome of you may remember the campaign run to save the 116 during Stage 3 of the bus review (the one involving the knitted stuff). Well I was on board the 116 today. I would ask for opinions on the service, but unfortunately there were no pax on board past Moorooka shops.

Another route for the chopping block...

One of many services which hasn't changed almost 10 years on...

The moral of the story is don't wait for improvements to come to you, you need to come to the improvements. I live on a BUZ corridor these days (and close to other modes) and life is delightful! Oh if only others could share...     

A lot of routes on the Northside are the same as they were in the 80/90's. Take the 335. It just keeps getting extended. Aspley leagues club, Dorville road, Balcara Ave, Taigum shops and Boondal railway station (most peak 339 rockets ran this route and that was after they bypassed Chermside interchange in peak hour) are all former terminus locations. Now it ends up at Sandgate. Who knows. It might eventually share a terminus with the 310 at Brighton

Quote from: HappyTrainGuy on April 28, 2022, 11:06:12 AMA lot of routes on the Northside are the same as they were in the 80/90's. Take the 335. It just keeps getting extended. Aspley leagues club, Dorville road, Balcara Ave, Taigum shops and Boondal railway station (most peak 339 rockets ran this route and that was after they bypassed Chermside interchange in peak hour) are all former terminus locations. Now it ends up at Sandgate. Who knows. It might eventually share a terminus with the 310 at Brighton

Or double back on itself and end up at Strathpine.  (Via Eatonvale.) 

But only every 3rd service during school terms if the sun is directly on a 35 degree angle.

Interesting article reposted by Strong Towns (also a great site to follow https://www.facebook.com/strongtowns)

It is from 2018 but just as relevant in SEQ/Brisbane today as it was then even more so.

https://humantransit.org/2018/07/basics-the-absurdity-of-counting-bus-routes.html?utm_campaign=meetedgar&utm_medium=social&utm_source=meetedgar.com&fbclid=IwAR1Mw7FgMnuzXDOaQBfITVTni8dvFZkO0Ugj9qPkt4DYeVKTm13N5Oirarg

Quote"And again, the real measure of a network plan is where people can get to in a reasonable amount of time.  In the Dublin proposal, for example, the average Dubliner can get to 20% more jobs (counting student enrolments) in 45 minutes.  That's a real expansion in the liberty and opportunity that people experience in their daily lives.  Are you sure the number of bus routes matters more than that?"

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All our prediction methods assume that the future is broadly similar to the past, but is that still a reasonable assumption?

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^ thanks.  Registered 

1pm Auckland is 11am AEST.

Sent to all outlets:

Brisbane Bus Network Languishing in the 1980's

15th June 2022

RAIL Back On Track has called for a proper, expert-led, non-politicised review of the Brisbane Bus Network since the failed 2013 review died in a political squabble. The scuttling of the 2013 review left the Brisbane Bus Network full of duplication, indirect routes, poor frequencies, bad connections with trains, focused on getting workers in and out of the CBD.  Whilst adding the "CityGliders" including the latest Gold CityGlider proposal have been popular they don't go to the heart of the network problem. They are actually a glimpse of how the whole network should work, but sit within a mess that is the current bus network.   

Recent comments from the ALP opposition in BCC show that any plan to bring the network in line with best-practice are likely to be politicised and the "save our hourly, not on a Saturday or Sunday, suburb wanderer" campaigns brought back to life.  This benefits no one not even the opposition.

Since 2013 cities like Auckland, Houston, Dublin, to name a few - have successfully redesigned their bus network and seen increased ridership that rival if not beat the levels seen on the Gold Coast Light Rail but across their whole city.

Frankly, both major parties are failing the people of Brisbane and SEQ.  They talk of world-class but our use of public transport is light-years from leading-practice cities who see active and public transport as high as 60-70% of all trips.  Trips that cost far less in tax payer subsidies and are not held hostage to rising petrol prices.

RAIL Back On Track urgently calls on the Lord Mayor, Councillor Cassidy, and the SEQ Council of Mayors to put politics aside and work as one with Translink to action:

1.  A public education program outlining the need to change the way we plan and build our city/region including bus network reform.

2.  A redesigned SEQ Bus Rapid Transit Network, with supporting feeder and cross suburban routes to create an inter-connected network of trunk and other bus routes across the region - Applying 15 Minute Neighbourhood and Multi-Modal Theories to Network Design ( https://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=14588.0 ).

3.  The redirection of transport and other investments away from road widenings, intersection expansions and car parks to prioritise active/public transport projects.

4.  Implementation of walkable/transit oriented 15min Neighbourhoods in all urban and commercial areas with with liveable street and higher-density, mixed-use development in local, district and regional centres; -- 15 Minute city: urban mobility solution to the environment ( https://www.intertraffic.com/news/15-minute-city-urban-mobility-solution-to-environment/ )

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track https://backontrack.org

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For information:  Trove archive

SEQ bus network review as it was on 10 April 2013

https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20130410112723/http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review?utm_source=translink&utm_medium=service-notice&utm_content=march-2013&utm_campaign=seq-bus-network-review

Still the best network designed for the Northside of brisbane. Somethings could have been improved but as a whole it was a massive step forward for a usable intergrated public transport network.

See > https://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=14850.0

for Brisbane's New Bus Network

I have locked this thread for now, please move over to the new thread for Brisbane's New Bus Network, thanks.

https://twitter.com/ozbob13/status/1621895273445478401

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Bus improvements in Brisbane, a decade of inaction

11th July 2024

RAIL Back On Track calls upon the State Government to end the inaction on bus improvements in Brisbane.

High frequency bus services are a quick, cheap way to boost the public transport system, but the government has been largely disinterested in meaningful action on this issue over the last 3 terms.

The reality is, most of the bus improvements have come in the form of tweaks to low frequency services and minor expansions of services into new housing estates.

Almost without exception, these are "bare minimum" hourly services, and many routes still do not run on Sundays.
Good luck if you have to work or want to have a life!

There is currently no strategy or time-line to boost patronage and improve routes on a regional level.

A damming report by the climate council highlights what we already knew (1). Brisbane has the worst public transport system in Australia, and a few key metrics highlight why:

- Only 1/3 of residents have access to high frequency services. This means for 2/3 of the population, the best you can hope for is generally a bus that comes once every hour. People drive rather than put up with that.

- Most frequent public transport services only operate within 8km of the Brisbane CBD. Outer areas cop a raw deal, and generally the active travel infrastructure is poorer too,

- Residents are piled into outer growth areas, without a reasonable level of bus services to compensate. Traffic queues in the outer suburbs are a daily sight as a result.

- Lower income earners in outer suburbs are given worse bus services. Service provision is 27% lower in low income suburbs.

- Most of the dollars for high frequency services are spent in Brisbane (23 routes) and the Gold Coast (9 routes) Redlands has no high frequency services. Moreton bay has none either. Ipswich and Logan have only 1 frequent route each.

- The BCC area has a population of 1.3 million.
This is roughly equal to the population of the four surrounding LGAs (Logan, Ipswich, Moreton Bay, Redlands) which also add up to 1.3m people.
It is clear that the allocation of services is dreadfully unfair and uneven.

- Even within Brisbane, the allocation of services is highly unbalanced. There are only 5 high frequency services for the entire northside, and 3 of them run on Gympie Road. Good luck if you live along other major arterial roads like Nudgee rd, Webster Rd, or Old Northern Rd.

Unsurprisingly, this manifests itself in travel behaviours (2):

. in Sydney, the average person makes 112 trips per year via public transport.
. in Melbourne it's 81. In Perth, it's 60.
. in SEQ, the number is under 50.


The Government may choose to spin it how it likes, but public transport usage in SEQ is lower largely because our network isn't as good as every other city, and calls to improve it are brushed off. (Often with the laughable reasoning that the Newman government did nothing at the time, so why should we?) To an extent, the upcoming 50 cent fare policy could be seen as an act of desperation to try and convince people to use a network that doesn't work for them.

We do support projects like Cross River Rail, Gold Coast Light Rail and the busway extension to Springwood, but these projects are not enough considering the sheer size of SEQ, and the reality is, many areas like Maroochydore, Flagstone and Ripley probably wont get rail for decades, so interim solutions like a grid of high frequency buses are the way to go.

We call on the state to urgently roll out high frequency bus services more broadly and fix this and do a better job at listening to the outer suburbs.

Time to get real.

References:

1. https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/next-stop-suburbia/

2. https://danielbowen.com/2023/12/07/pt-patronage-across-australia/

Robert Dow
Administration
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RAIL Back On Track https://backontrack.org

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City of Moreton Bay

https://www.moretonbay.qld.gov.au/News/Media/Public-transport-in-Moreton-Bay

Mayor calls for a fix to dismal public transport in Moreton Bay

10th July 2024

City of Moreton Bay Mayor Peter Flannery has called on the State to fund more public transport across the city suggesting increased services and bus rapid transport systems could be the solution.

The Hills District was named one of the worst for public transport in the Climate Council report released this week, Next Stop Suburbia: Making Shared Transport Work for Everyone in Aussie Cities.

"We know public transport in our City has not kept pace with demand, so it is refreshing to see this called out," Mayor Flannery said. "The Climate Council identifies our Hills District as having the worst availability of frequent public transport and a suburb that deserves immediate attention.

"I'd welcome a serious look at the rest of City of Moreton Bay, where we know that only 3% of resident's trips are made by rail and an even worse, 2% by bus.

"This is unsustainable with congestion choking roads and the City of Moreton already supporting rapid population growth on top of the State's demands in their Shaping SEQ 2023 Regional Plan. "It is therefore concerning to us that the State's current plans are devoid of any meaningful public transport planning.

"On the back of the 2023 Global Traffic Scorecard also released this month that identifies Brisbane's traffic congestion as the 12th worst in the world out of more than 900 cities across 37 countries, we are calling on the State to plan ahead to ensure City of Moreton Bay does not go the same way.

"Provision of bus services and infrastructure to support a rapid bus transport system would connect key growth corridors with major employment, shopping centre and transport hubs including train stations to help connectivity.

"As the operator of public transport in Moreton Bay the State needs to factor this into planning for new roads - it's just a non-negotiable - especially those roads connecting our growth areas such as Waraba.

"While Brisbane has State funding for the Brisbane Metro and bus network, and the Gold Coast has the light rail, City of Moreton Bay has received nothing for commuter transport to alleviate car use and ensure better connectivity between our city hubs.

"We commissioned a report to look at State investment in Moreton Bay and on a per capita basis, Moreton Bay is consistently one of the lowest funded South East Queensland councils.

"We've been told the demand is not there for our public transport, but that was measured years ago and with limited services, why would people bother. We need to create that demand with reliable public transport services in the first place, especially in the lead up to the Olympics 2032."

"Council is working hard to ensure active transport planning is prioritised for new growth areas, and improved where possible, but the State Government via Translink also have a role to play and they need to give us a chance.

Mayor Flannery said the City was ready for a possible influx of commuters parking at train stations with the introduction of the 50-cent fare trial in August.

"We appreciate this cost-of-living support for local families, that will cut regular travel costs on average from Petrie to the City by more than $8 each way and will no doubt increase patronage, with over 52,000 of our residents travelling into Brisbane to work each day by car.

"Residents should rest assured Council has plans in place for parking at rail stations when this initiative is introduced and will be monitoring the impact.

"Public transport is key to our polycentric city vision as we increase local employment opportunities and shorten resident's journey to work. With numerous city hubs, we need to open up key routes that enable reliable services to encourage people to leave their cars at home.

"We are the third largest Council in Australia with an expected population of one million people in less than 30 years and right now the routes are years old without a reset, the frequency is dismal, and our rapid population growth has not taken into account.

"We need to make it easy for people to commute using public transport. This is the most environmentally and economically sustainable approach to ensure City of Moreton Bay's liveability.

Go non-BCC Mayors!!!!

Interesting map showing stop usage? Rationalisation?

https://henrus1.com/maps/seqtransit/stopmap.html