Ipswich Line & Caboolture line timetable changes - Effective February 23.

[Arnz]

http://timetables.translink.com.au/db/servicechange.php?id=271

Caboolture
    * new weekday service departs Caboolture station at 6.01am, arrives Central station at 7.05am
    * new weekday service departs Petrie station at 7.58am, arrives Central station at 8.43am.
Ipswich
    * new weekday service departs Ipswich station at 5.55am, arrives Central station at 6.55am
    * new weekday service departs Corinda station at 7.49am, arrives Central station at 8.11am
    * service that normally departs Darra station at 7.51am, will start from Ipswich station at 7.24am, and arrive Central station at 8.21am.

[ozbob]

Media Release 6 Feb 2009

SEQ:  More services for the Caboolture and Ipswich very welcome!  Thank you!! 

RAIL Back On Track (http://backontrack.org) a web based community support group for rail and public transport and an advocate for public transport users has welcomed the new QR Citytrain services to be introduced on the Caboolture and Ipswich lines from the 23rd February 2009 (1).

Robert Dow, Spokesman for RAIL Back On Track said:

"Both the Caboolture and Ipswich lines have been experiencing significant congestion during weekday early peak and peak services for a number of years.  The addition of two extra services from Ipswich, at 5.55am and 7.24am will help significantly to ease the congestion and encourage more use of sustainable transport.  The extra service from Corinda at 7.49am will also assist in picking up the inner city loadings so that the longer haul services will not be as congested."

"The two extra weekday services, one leaving Caboolture at 6.01am and another leaving Petrie at 7.58am will also help ease some of the congestion and provide commuters with some more options.  More services needed though."

"RAIL Back On Track has often suggested a number of specific improvements to these lines and we are delighted that QR Passenger have introduced some of  these new services."

"There is a need to consider some additional services for the afternoon evening peak from the CBD to both Caboolture and Ipswich too, and  as more trains and crew become available these congestion points will also need to be eased."

"Further improvements to the rest of the network will be possible as more of the new trains are rolled out, and more crew becomes available."

"These additional services are very welcome. Thank you!"

References:

1.  http://servicechanges.translink.com.au/db/servicechange.php?id=271

Contact:

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org

[stephenk]

Whilst I'm sure these new services will be welcomed by Caboolture and Ipswich Line commuters, there are still extra services required in the evening peak on these lines - particularly the 30min gap in services to Caboolture after 6pm.

I wonder if only the Ipswich and Caboolture Lines will have timetable changes effective Feb 23? Both the Ferny Grove and Cleveland Line timetables require adjustments to alleviate the unacceptable gaps in service of over 20mins.

[ozbob]

Minister for Transport, Trade, Employment and Industrial Relations
The Honourable John Mickel
09/02/2009

New peak hour rail services for busy Caboolture and Ipswich lines

New morning peak hour rail services on the Ipswich and Caboolture lines starting in two weeks will cater for an extra 15,000 passengers each week.

Transport Minister John Mickel said today four new weekday services would start from February 23 on the two busy rail lines, providing an extra 1800 seats and room for 1200 standing passengers each weekday.

"We are serious about tackling traffic congestion by investing in public transport and that's why the Queensland Government is introducing two new six-carriage services to both the Caboolture and Ipswich lines," Mr Mickel said.

"The Queensland Government is also investing in new trains to deliver extra rail services - a total of 102 three-carriage trains are scheduled to be rolled out by 2016 to boost the total urban rail fleet by 70 per cent."

Mr Mickel said one of the new services would depart Caboolture station at 6:01am and arrive at Central station at 7:05am.

"To further alleviate pressure on morning services on the Caboolture line, another new service will leave Petrie station at 7:58am and reach Central station at 8:43am," he said.

On the Ipswich line, a new service would depart Ipswich station at 5:55am and arrive at Central station at 6:55am, before another service left Corinda station at 7:49am and reached Central at 8:11am.

"Ipswich commuters will also be pleased to hear another service currently departing Darra at 7:51am will be extended, now leaving earlier from Ipswich at 7:24am before reaching Central at 8.21am," Mr Mickel said.

He said the introduction of the new services would further address growing passenger demand.

The latest services follow the introduction of a new morning peak hour service from Darra to Ipswich on January 12 this year.

"These are also in addition to the early-bird train services introduced on both the Ipswich and Caboolture lines in mid-October last year, which have proven very popular," he said.

Mr Mickel said roughly one train was being rolled out a month as part of the government's $586 million investment in 44 new trains - the first of the additional 102 three-carriage sets.

"An extra 58 three-carriage trains will be procured as part of our commitment to ramp up capacity across the urban rail network," he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Mickel said an extra 64,000 commuters a week would be able to be carried on Brisbane buses after a record $6.8 million investment by TransLink for new buses and more frequent services.

He said the improved bus services, also due to start from February 23, would benefit commuters in Brisbane city and Brisbane's northern, southern and north-western suburbs.

Mr Mickel said the State Government, through TransLink, would fund the record bus improvements with services delivered by Brisbane Transport.

He said this bus improvement package was TransLink's single biggest investment in bus services with 26 new buses to service the new and improved routes.

"Buses carry about two thirds of all passengers on the TransLink network so adding new buses and services are part of meeting the growing demand."

The improved bus routes will include 66, 124, 140, 141, 142, 150, 153, 156, 157, 161, 162, 199, 343, 345, 363, 365, 366, 368, 369, 372, 373, 377 and 378.

Mr Mickel said some of the new enhancements included a new limited stop service (363 - Herston to Brisbane) and two new prepaid bus services (157- Runcorn to Brisbane and 343 - Aspley to Brisbane).

He said there would be significant improvements along the 140 (Browns Plains to Brisbane) corridor with 10 to 15 minute frequencies all day, seven days a week.

Mr Mickel said public transport patronage across the TransLink network had soared almost 40 per cent in the past four years.

"We are working hard to boost public transport services through extra trains and buses and major improvements to infrastructure amid this unprecedented growth," he said.

Mr Mickel also encouraged commuters to familiarise themselves with the rail service enhancements and other minor timetable adjustments due to come into effect on February 23.

For further information about public transport services, please visit www.translink.com.au or call 13 12 30, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

9 February 2009

[Arnz]

Whilst I'm sure these new services will be welcomed by Caboolture and Ipswich Line commuters, there are still extra services required in the evening peak on these lines - particularly the 30min gap in services to Caboolture after 6pm.

The afternoon Caboolture (and Nambour for that matter) peak period still has some gaps and rollingstock upgrades that require fixing. The 30 min frequencies to Caboolture technically resume after 6:30pm, if you count the Nambour express between 6 and 6:30pm.   

For example the 6:09pm Nambour express and 7:26pm Nambour express needs to have their rollingstock swapped.  The 6:09pm could do with the 6-car MU (preferably a 6-car IMU with toilets), whilst the less busier 7:26pm could do with the 4-car ICE.

When the 4-car ICE is used on the 6pm service, there is people standing in each carriage to Petrie and Caboolture whilst suburban passengers hog the seats.  This is a result of less seats on the ICE.

(EDIT: Since ATM most ICE carriages are out of service for repairs or training, either a 6-car SMU260 or IMU160 are currently used on the 6:09pm Nambour service.  Which translate to a all-seats taken load with few to no standees leaving Central on most nights.  This would seem to be a ideal shoulder peak load for a longer run without the crowding and seating issues in the suburban sections)

[brismike]

Darra really gets nothing from this. A train that used to commence there (7.51am), and if you caught it you were guaranteed a seat pretty much anywhere you wanted, will now arrive at Darra chockers with people from further west. Thanks for that!

[ozbob]

I wouldn't be too worried Mike.  The new service will be behind another by only a few minutes.  Still plenty of room, and just think when the Richlands branch gets under way, Darra is going to be a junction station.  There will be a lot of extra services then too!

[ozbob]

From the Queensland Times click here!

Extra train services aimed at easing congestion

Extra train services aimed at easing congestion

Rob Lockyear | 9th February 2009

EARLY-MORNING Ipswich line commuters will have room to stretch their legs in a couple of weeks when extra services breathe thousands of new seats into the congested line.

The services, introduced on February 23, will provide hundreds of extra seats each day.

RAIL Back on Track spokesman Robert Dow said the Ipswich line had been experiencing significant congestion during weekday peak services for several years.

?The addition of two extra services from Ipswich, at 5.55am and 7.24am, will help significantly to ease the congestion and encourage more use of sustainable transport,? Mr Dow said.

?The extra service from Corinda at 7.49am will also assist in picking up the inner city loadings so that the longer haul services will not be as congested.?

However, Mr Dow said while the new trains were welcome, extra services during afternoon peak times were still needed.

Meanwhile, the Ipswich line still looks set to be disrupted by industrial action after last minute talks between QR and the Australian Federated Union of Locomotive Employees (AFULE) failed to resolve the issue.

AFULE state secretary Greg Smith said the hour-long talk had not called a halt to the February 16 strike.

?We are no closer to reaching a settlement but we are meeting again tomorrow,? Mr Smith said yesterday.

[david]

The new timetables are up on the Translink website now.

Although the additional services are much welcome, I'm surprised there were no extra afternoon peak services for either line, even though they are chockers as well. I'm also surprised to see that they didn't extend the 7:58am Redbank to Doomben express to start at Ipswich. This train usually has a fair few seats spare when it arrives at Central and it could've been used to fill the rather large 25 minute gap during that time from Ipswich.