2 Oct 2010: SEQ: Car park chaos: Bus it or cycle it instead!

[ozbob]

Media release 2 October 2010

SEQ: Car park chaos: Bus it or cycle it instead!

RAIL Back On Track (http://backontrack.org) a web based community support group for rail and public transport and an advocate for public transport commuters has called for the high frequency feeder bus services to rail and a solid commitment to bus-rail, bicycle-rail and bicycle-bus integration to relieve car congestion and parking chaos around suburban bus and rail stations.

Robert Dow, Spokesman for RAIL Back On Track said:

"Recent calls for more park and ride facilities around inner Brisbane bus and rail stations highlights how difficult it can be to access the local bus or train stations (1)."

"Unfortunately, more park and ride car parks in the inner city is not the answer (2). Car park construction has extreme costs attached (3) which would be better spent on the proven patronage booster - more frequent services(4). The valuable land gobbled up by more single-purpose car parks would also be better used for mixed-use transit-oriented development."

"Dedicated bus rapid transit feeder services to rail stations and improved bike-and-ride schemes are therefore the answer."

"For example, Perth has a number of dedicated bicycle compounds at ten stations (5). Melbourne also has large 'Parkiteer' bicycle cages at 31 metropolitan rail stations (6) and 10 regional rail stations. Melbourne's scheme is swipe card activated. Could such a scheme in SEQ be rolled out by TransLink and integrated with the Go Card?"

"A review of Melbourne's bike and ride facilities also show that many users who were cycling to the rail stations were previously driving there. (7)"

"Buses to rail stations, even if only during the peak hour is also a no-brainer. Existing feeder bus services to rail should also be boosted and hours extended so people can get a proper chance to get home on them." (8)

"Many of existing feeder routes finish at 5 or 6pm, and have poor half hourly, hourly connections or worse. There is great room for improvement and genuine integration on this front."

References:

1. Car Parking- solutions http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=532.0

2. Call for park and ride hubs to be built closer to Brisbane's CBD
  http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/call-for-park-n-ride-hubs-to-be-built-closer-to-brisbanes-cbd-to-ease-parking-squeeze/story-e6freoof-1225932518573

3. http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=4242.0

4. BUZ routes- frequency & reliability the winning formula
  http://www.thredbo-conference-series.org/downloads/thredbo10_papers/thredbo10-themeA-Warren.pdf

5. Bicycle Parking at train stations
  http://www.transport.wa.gov.au/cycling/1523.asp#2

6. Bikes and public transport,
    http://www.metlinkmelbourne.com.au/using-public-transport/bikes-and-public-transport/#6

7. Parkiteer- secure bicycle parking at public transport nodes in Melbourne,
  www.cmsl.co.nz/assets/sm/4469/61/Paper169-Martin.pdf

8. SEQ: Improving transfer opportunities, improves the integration of the TransLink Network,
    http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=4363.0

Contact:

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org

[#Metro]

Its always good to see what the feedback is...


Looking at some CM comments- improved train frequency would also support... the sooner Brisbane starts looking at its suburban train system as a metro-in-waiting, the better.

Russell of Country QLD  Posted at 6:28 AM October 01, 2010

   Try to get a park at or near a rail station anywhere from Ipswich to Darra after 7.00am and you will see why the public transport equation does not add up in SE Queensland. I suspect "the powers" discourage extra train parking because there are not enough trains to carry the extra passengers that would use this facility. Hence .. guess what .. more people on the already congested roads and more single occupant vehicles on the long slow haul. A properly planned and co-ordinated long term transport plan is required where the implementation is not interrupted by headlines and elections. I suspect it will never happen under any administration.

Often I hear people say "oh, but people don't want to transfer so close to the city"; well, more proof that people will do it if given the chance:

Scotty of QLD  Posted at 6:31 AM October 01, 2010

Here's a novel idea. Instead of the council bus system competing with the trains, use buses as a high frequency shuttle service in local communities taking passengers to the nearest rail line. That way they could save millions by not needing more busways and spend that money on improving rail services. that way commuters wouldn't need to take the car out at all. Council needs to stop applying band-aid fixes to problems and come up with changes that eliminate the problem in the first place.

Comment 6 of 20

I can only guess this next person lives out at Samford, and catches the bus to Ferny Grove...

C of brisbane  Posted at 7:29 AM October 01, 2010

Most my way park & ride cause of the limited buses - only 2 in the morning & 2 in the evening. its 15km from our area to the nearest train station - so no wonder they're drowning in cars outside of the parking spaces.

Comment 9 of 20

Indooroopilly came up- missed opportunity with bus-rail interchange.

Jim of Brisbane  Posted at 8:40 AM October 01, 2010

Absolutely. Indooroopilly train station is an excellent example - poorly serviced by buses as they all go to Indooroopilly Shopping Centre which is half a km away, with thousands upon thousands of people who live nearby but who live too far from the train station to walk there. Give them a park and ride facility, which can be built on the vacant military land nearby, and it would be an excellent and very useful facility.

Comment 13 of 20

brissy bronco of brissy  Posted at 9:58 PM October 01, 2010

   If you gave us some safe and easy cycle ways along with the bus ways we might be able to ride.

Comment 20 of 20

Bicycles to rail and parallel to busways...  :bi

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/call-for-park-n-ride-hubs-to-be-built-closer-to-brisbanes-cbd-to-ease-parking-squeeze/comments-e6freoof-1225932518573

[ozbob]

From the Northern Times Caboolture 1st October 2010 page 14

PARKING CHAOS

PARKING CHAOS

Lobby group RAIL Back on Track is calling on a taskforce including councils,
TransLink, the State Government and community groups to address congestion at park 'n'
ride facilities near train stations.