Brisbane Institute - Derailing traffic chaos – Mon 2 August

[ozbob]

--> http://www.brisinst.org.au/here-and-now/derailing-traffic-chaos-monday-2-august

What:  A panel discussion exploring the opportunities and challenges of transport congestion in south east Queensland
When:  Monday, 2 August 2010;  6pm for 6.15pm start
Where:  The Irish Club, 175 Elizabeth Street, Brisbane
Cost:  $20.  Brisbane Institute members $15.  Registration and prepayment essential.     To register, complete the form and return to The Brisbane Institute.

Commuters and businesses in south east Queensland lose thousands of hours every year sitting in traffic. What are the real barriers to freeing up our transport routes? What are the options? And what can we, as both users of transport and contributors to traffic, do to help?

The focus on solving our traffic problems has sharpened with our increasing concern for our lifestyle and environment.  New infrastructure, including the recently announced cross river rail project and innovations such as transport oriented developments, needs to go hand in hand with new community behaviour if we're to derail traffic chaos in the south east.

Hear the latest news and have your say on what you think needs to happen to derail our traffic chaos. Join Minister for Transport Rachel Nolan, Cross River Rail project director Luke Franzmann, Infrastructure and Planning Assistant Coordinator General James Coutts, AECOM's Sigrid Sanderson, BCC Transport policy expert Brendan O'Keefe and Rail Back on Track public transport advocate Robert Dow, as we discuss the opportunities and challenges of moving around our capital.

[ozbob]

Well attended (full house).  Interesting overview of CRR nothing new as such, but the there was a good discussion, ranging from light rail through to TODs.  I highlighted frequency improvements as a major issue .. 

[ozbob]

Forgot to mention good to see a number of RAIL BoT members attended.  Cross River Rail is the subject of the keynote address at our Citizens' Public Transport Forum on Saturday 4th September.  All details including registration information click --> here!  Still places available ..

[somebody]

I think I should have gone to this one.  Oh well.

[Jonno]

Great evening.  I will say though that I am sick of the Can Do Campbell "we need a balanced approach" followed by a spiel about a plan that is not balanced across the transport modes on any level be it dollars invested, benefits gained, patronage levels, people served or service provided.  The "balanced approach" is a sham and nothing but spin.

[Golliwog]

Great evening.  I will say though that I am sick of the Can Do Campbell "we need a balanced approach" followed by a spiel about a plan that is not balanced across the transport modes on any level be it dollars invested, benefits gained, patronage levels, people served or service provided.  The "balanced approach" is a sham and nothing but spin.

Well it may have A balance, just not neccesarily an equal one. I agree with the problem though, it's just a little bit road centric.

[SteelPan]

Great evening.  I will say though that I am sick of the Can Do Campbell "we need a balanced approach" followed by a spiel about a plan that is not balanced across the transport modes on any level be it dollars invested, benefits gained, patronage levels, people served or service provided.  The "balanced approach" is a sham and nothing but spin.

I really do not understand just what people want the Lord Mayor of Brisbane to really do!  The City runs (via Translink) buses and ferries.  It has facilitated construction, by the private sector, of the TransApex tunnels project (in part anyway).

The State Govt is responsible for rail - or the lack thereof - doesn't matter to me what colour political flag Newman raises - I recon the bloke has done a great job with TransApex - let's see if the State delivers on its CRR project!

Are people really suggesting a city the size of Brisbane and growing at the rate the region is, is not going to need the TransApex project? - (Clem 7 first being put forward by an ALP administration).

C'mon, go to cities like LA, Chicago, NYC or even Sydney and roads go up, under and over - and yes, there's rail too!  It's up to the BCC and Qld Govt to deliver and so far, Newman's kept his word!

[Jonno]

The answer is yes because they only create more congestion.  Don't take my word for it read it for yourself
http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=4159.0

It is all just a waste of our taxes in construction cost as well as environment and health externalities.

Also a good read

http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=2868.0

The evidence is there than the whole TransApex will only encourage more people to drive further more often. But hey let's bankrupt the BCC first just for good measure!!

[#Metro]

I think what Jonno is getting at is the 'balanced transport' smokescreen.

Everyone knows (except those pulling the strings it seems) that you cannot build your way out of congestion. "Balanced Transport" is the name used to  legitimise the excessive expenditure on road projects. Take a look at the funding split in the recent QLD Government infrastructure plan for the state. The roads: public transport for the period which has budget estimate runs at approximately 60:40, clearly in favour of roads.

In selected regional areas, such as the Sunshine Coast, it is even more biased to road expenditure. It is no accident that the people of the Sunshine Coast have third rate public transport access. It more or less is comparable in land use, distance, density and distance between the main strips to rail, to the Gold Coast, I would be very interested in comparing trips per capita for these areas, I think the Sunshine Coast PT use would be well below.

If congestion, traffic jams and obesity are such serious problems, you do not take "balanced action".
You take the radical option- bus lanes, exclusive priority for PT, major PT funding etcetera. We already have seen the results
with BUZ, increases of 100%-300% that are just results off the scale.

I am very skeptical of TransApex. North Link tunnel may work if it does reduce car travel on Milton and Coronation drive, but traffic levels will return unless the gains are "locked in" with street works such as exclusive bus lanes, cycle lanes etc etera. Indeed, i don't even believe there are benefits for buses with the North Link tunnel at all, because I think a feeder network to rail in the Western Suburbs would also cut the overall time it takes to get into the CBD.

C'mon, go to cities like LA, Chicago, NYC or even Sydney and roads go up, under and over - and yes, there's rail too!  It's up to the BCC and Qld Govt to deliver and so far, Newman's kept his word!

Vancouver is a city that is consistently rated in the top of all the cities on Earth. A quick look on Google Earth reveals that it has only a single freeway in the main urbanised core, and this does not go to the CBD or bypass it.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Vancouver&sll=49.248523,-123.1088&sspn=0.176153,0.520477&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver+Regional+District,+British+Columbia,+Canada&ll=49.243604,-123.079834&spn=0.088085,0.260239&t=h&z=12