BrizCommuter Blog

[BrizCommuter]

Gazza is amused that BrizCommuter knows what a B&M is 

Though I'd disagree that Riddlers was vanilla...It seemed like a good example of the old school generation of B&Ms (Like Nemesis, the Batman clones, Kumba etc) when they were still doing intense rides.

BrizCommuter is more partial to Intamins than B&Ms. However, Nemesis is the dogs dangles.

[red dragin]

We ran out of time to ride nemisis, got to ride Air, and go "wtf am I doing" at the top edge of oblivion! Elected members of the LNP probably get that same thought & feeling daily 

Thirteen was, well, fun enough.

[Gazza]

Geez? You really went to Alton and didn't ride Nemesis? You missed not only the best attraction in the park, but one of the best in the world....Kinda like taking a holiday to Sydney but not seeing the opera house and bridge!

[SurfRail]

[red dragin]

Geez? You really went to Alton and didn't ride Nemesis? You missed not only the best attraction in the park, but one of the best in the world....Kinda like taking a holiday to Sydney but not seeing the opera house and bridge!

Stuck in Air & Thirteens queues with short breakdowns on a very busy day.  With a three hour drive home

Will go back soon enough.

[BrizCommuter]

http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/translink-network-plan-2012-missing.html
TransLink Network Plan 2012 - also missing in action!

[Golliwog]

http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/translink-network-plan-2012-missing.html
TransLink Network Plan 2012 - also missing in action!

Are we sure they're financial year, I thought they were calendar?

[BrizCommuter]

http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/translink-network-plan-2012-missing.html
TransLink Network Plan 2012 - also missing in action!

Are we sure they're financial year, I thought they were calendar?

2011 plan was released in approx. Q2 of the financial year, or Q4 of the calendar year, so BrizCommuter is pretty sure that it financial year.

[BrizCommuter]

As the other thread is locked, the BrizCommuter word on the Faregocard idea (best not to comment further). 
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/faregocard-good-idea-but-flawed.html

[BrizCommuter]

http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/brisbane-australias-least-liveable.html
Why is Brisbane the least liveable Aussie mainland state capital?

[BrizCommuter]

http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2013/09/brisbane-congestion-capital.html
How now to handle road congestion - the LNP way!

[BrizCommuter]

BrizCommuter's 2014 World Fare Comparison
Part 1
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2013/12/2014-world-fare-comparison-part-1.html
Part 2
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2013/12/2014-world-fare-comparison-part-2.html
Part 3
Coming soon

[Fares_Fair]

Quote from Blog

In brief
As there has been no significant changes to fare structure (other than an across the board 7.5% increase) then it can still be concluded that longer distance journeys in SE Queensland are considerably better value for money than shorter journeys. This bizarrely favours environmentally unsustainable long distance commuting and lifestyle habits.

How or why is long distance commuting environmentally unsustainable?
Isn't that what trains are for?
What do you suggest is an environmentally sustainable form of transport for long-distance commutes, tourists etc.?

Might I politely suggest removing the second sentence, though it clearly is your opinion and your blog.

[SurfRail]

He's correct.  There's little sustainable about my journey - I'm under no illusions or self-deception.  I live on the Gold Coast because I prefer it to Brisbane, and I'm happy to pay for the privilege.  In return, Brisbane doesn't have to accommodate me and benefits from my labour and spending.

My environmental footprint would be considerably smaller if I lived in New Farm.

[Fares_Fair]

He says its unsustainable. I disagree.
Though, technically everything is unless it's in infinite supply.
Solar generated electricity could be used if coal becomes exhausted.

Train is more environmentally friendly and  uses a shared common resource than the car.
The benefits you mention need to be included in the footprint equation IMHO.

[James]

I strongly agree with BrizCommuter's statement.

Long-distance commutes are unsustainable as they require more energy, force people to spend longer travelling and have a higher level of social impact (it is also why urban sprawl is unsustainable). To a degree I support a slight subsidisation of long-distance travel vs. short-distance travel, mostly because the Sunshine Coast line is awful and the Gold Coast line runs on a pathetic milk run alignment between Beenleigh and Park Road, taking twice as long as a car. Long-distance commutes also take up more "space" on our roads (i.e. if a GC commuter drives along the M3 by car, that 'slot' on the M3 is a slot which cannot be used by a car going CBD - Tarragindi AND a car going Garden City - Springwood).

Almost all transit around the world runs at some form of a loss - both private and public. (In fact, our own Airtrain is one of the few PT services to run at a profit). However, the less dense and more spread out the population, the more difficult it is to run PT and the more transit resources are required to be provided. Long-term, this is unsustainable, as is seen by the fact the state is broke and unable to keep up with the continued construction of housing.

Fares are too biased towards long-distance commuters. I do not understand why it will cost me $1.77 to travel 2km to Uni, yet for 4x that amount I can travel all the way to Burleigh Heads, a distance of around 95km. The flagfall is too large, which subsequently engulfs the fare component and makes one-zone trips extremely expensive. I think currently the long-distance commute fares are about right. Fares in the inner city are far too high. Flagfall needs to be reduced by $1 adult/$0.50 concession on go card, with zonal 'steps' increased/made consistent.

[BrizCommuter]

Quote from Blog

In brief
As there has been no significant changes to fare structure (other than an across the board 7.5% increase) then it can still be concluded that longer distance journeys in SE Queensland are considerably better value for money than shorter journeys. This bizarrely favours environmentally unsustainable long distance commuting and lifestyle habits.

How or why is long distance commuting environmentally unsustainable?
Isn't that what trains are for?
What do you suggest is an environmentally sustainable form of transport for long-distance commutes, tourists etc.?

Might I politely suggest removing the second sentence, though it clearly is your opinion and your blog.

BrizCommuter is not removing it, because it is a fact. If you travel further to get to work, you have a higher carbon footprint. James's reply pretty much covers the main points.   

Anyway, it's been asked for, and now it's here, the comparison between public transport fares and average income.
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/2014-world-fare-comparison-part-3.html

[ozbob]

^ thanks Briz, excellent and very useful pieces of work, all three parts.  Has been widely disseminated ...   

[BrizCommuter]

Thanks Ozbob.

(Sorry, for blatant cross posting)

TransLink's 2014 Fares - The Awful Facts
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/translinks-2014-fares-awful-facts.html

Feel free to pass it on via email, twitter, Facebook, Google+, MySpace (only joking about the last one).

[BrizCommuter]

^^^^^  158 downloads just overnight! Wow.

[ozbob]

Sent to all outlets:

3rd January 2014

TransLink's 2014 Fares - The Awful Facts



http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/translinks-2014-fares-awful-facts.html

[BrizCommuter]

Thanks Ozbob!

[newbris]

Really effective graphic. Thanks for the hard work on behalf of us transport users. Really enjoy your blog as well.

[techblitz]

I like anyone who mentions faulty gocard readers and fixed fares as a result...

[BrizCommuter]

Part 1 of the world fare comparison is currently trending at number 1 on Brisbane Reddit. Yay!

[ozbob]

Sent to all outlets:

6th January 2014

Go! - Avoid single paper ticket ripoff - FARE-mageddon Monday is here!

Greetings,

From today, fares on the TransLink public transport network increase 7.5%.  This is many times inflation/CPI and will only make the already unaffordable fares even more so. Since 2010 go card fares have now increased in real terms around 83%, paper tickets 114%. Today is FARE-mageddon Monday!

The cost of single paper ticket fares relative to the go card is very excessive.  It is in  the best interests of all public transport users to move to a go card, even if they are not doing 9 journeys or more a week.  By moving to a go card they also assist in improving considerably running times for buses as well.

Paper tickets are at least 30% dearer for the equivalent peak go card trip. Off peak go card fares are only 55% the cost of paper single tickets.  There is a time limit on paper single tickets.  For passengers travelling through 10 zones or less this time period is 2 hours from time of purchase,  travelling 11 zones or more 3 hours 30 minutes ( http://translink.com.au/tickets-and-fares/other-tickets/paper-tickets ).  The fact there are time limits on the paper tickets is not well understood by many users and could lead to a fare evasion offence in ignorance.

Off peak discounts (presently 20%) are only available to go card users. A small improvement is that off peak touch on time is now 8.30am from today (was 9am).

Go card users can transfer up three times within one hour for each transfer, this can make travel even more affordable. Go card users can take short journeys early in the week to offset other high cost journeys.

The online facilities for management of a go card - e.g. auto top up, transaction history is good.  Users should be encouraged to register go cards, by doing that should the card be lost any funds on the go card can be recovered.

We have compiled some tips for go card users.  See  the 'Smart GO CARD User Guide' --> http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=5149.0

Official go card information at TransLink -->  http://translink.com.au/tickets-and-fares/go-card

Best wishes
Robert

Contact:

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

Sent to all outlets:

3rd January 2014

TransLink's 2014 Fares - The Awful Facts



http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/translinks-2014-fares-awful-facts.html

[BrizCommuter]

Pretty amazing savings from doing the go card rort!
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/doing-go-card-rort.html

[BrizCommuter]

Over 3 full train loads of views in the last 24 hours for the go card rort blog post! 

[BrizCommuter]

http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/qr-passenger-load-survey-where-is-it.html
QR Passenger Load Survey 2013 - where is it?  :conf

[BrizCommuter]

BrizCommuter has far too much time on his hands!
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2014/02/train-etiquette-super-simple-stuff-2.html

[BrizCommuter]

BrizCommuter's last post (for a long while), yes, really!
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2014/03/the-last-post-for-while.html

Apparently, BrizCommuter's blog will be preserved forever (or at least until the next flood) by Queensland State Library!

[ozbob]

BrizCommuter's last post (for a long while), yes, really!
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2014/03/the-last-post-for-while.html

Apparently, BrizCommuter's blog will be preserved forever (or at least until the next flood) by Queensland State Library!

Well done Briz!  Thanks for your valuable and incisive analyses of the basket case that is public transport in SEQ!