Article: Rapid transit project to help transport corridor work

[ozbob]

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Rapid transit project to help transport corridor work

Rapid transit project to help transport corridor work
Bruce Atkinson

Posted August 05, 2011 08:45:36

The Sunshine Coast Regional Council plans to use the Gold Coast rapid transit project as a model for developing its $3 billion transport corridor in south-east Queensland.

Council and the Queensland Government are planning the corridor from Beerwah to Maroochydore and could include heavy and light rail and rapid bus options.

The project has been pushed back until 2020 but Sunshine Coast Councillor Vivien Griffin says the Gold Coast model is worth investigating.

"Let's learn from their experience, learn the things that they said worked and also what didn't work," she said.

"They have been enormously successful in accessing both State Government and Infrastructure Australia funds to bring this project forward and getting lessons from them about that I think will be invaluable.

"One of the things I respect the way they went about it is that they first were very clear in developing what the vision and role for their particular rapid transit was to be and that's the important first step we need to have."

The Gold Coast rapid transit team will brief Sunshine Coast councillors on Monday.

[Fares_Fair]

Duplication of the line to Landsborough and then onto Nambour is the higher priority for the network.
CAMCOS cannot feed into an already congested section of track.

Regards,
Fares_Fair.

[Stillwater]

The enormous cost of CAMCOS will push planners to look to the Beerburrum-Nambour duplication and realignment first.  What will proceed also is CoastConnect -- a rapid bus system linking Maroochydore and Caloundra.  It will cost approximately $400 million and will run north-south through the populous coastal strip.  At strategic points (Landsborough-Caloundra, Nambour-Maroochydore and, probably, Nambour-Coolum, maybe Yandina-Coolum if train stabling occurs at Yandina), rapid bus links will connect back into the Nambour-Brisbane rail corridor.

I agree with FF.  The rail planners will come round to thinking, and they haven't currently because they are thinking with their passenger rail hats on, that they can structure a project incorporating freight rail upgrades to Maryborough West, for which the federal government would be prepared to make a substantial contribution.

Part of the art of infrastructure provision is to have other levels of government pay for it.  Just look at Connecting SEQ 2031 and see how much of the financial responsibility for PT is being foisted onto the federal government by the Queensland Government.

Indirect passenger rail benefits will flow; thus fulfilling Anna Bligh's promise of a passenger rail journey of approximately one hour between the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane.  In the absence of a rail line in the Trouts Road Corridor anytime in the near future, this promise will be fudged to involve a Landsborough-Brisbane run in 'approximately an hour'. 

That would be okay, initially, because it would require duplication between Beerburrum and Landsborough as a priority (and as the government promised originally).  At Landsborough, trains and buses will operate to Nambour, as they do now, but the CAMCOS corridor spur to Caloundra could be a road, in the first instance, with express buses running to Caloundra, there to connect with the CoastConnect buses.

Duplication to Landsborough is required, as a minimum, in any scenario and should have been built by now.

The requirement to improve the Sunshine Coast's transport woes will come at the same time at the state will be struggling to fund the CRR, which has network-wide implications.  The state can't find the money needed for CRR and CAMCOS together, even though both will be required in the same timeframe.

Preference would go to CRR.  That means a more modest solution, consistent with the overall grand vision for the Sunshine Coast will need to be found.  That gives weight to the achievable Beerburrum-Landsborough upgrade, with one or two realignments to Nambour, and the CoastConnect bus link.  Relatively 'modest' (not much change out of about $1.8 billion) but this won't be dead money, as it will fund foundation improvements to the wider vision.

[Arnz]

Stillwater, are you referring to the CAMCOS corridor being a road, do you mean between Maroochydore and Caloundra, or from Beerwah to Caloundra (not a ideal option, and a complete waste of money when you got the Steve Irwin Way and Caloundra Road!).

If the later, bus priority lanes on Steve Irwin Way and Caloundra Road would likely be identified cheaper solution, and would probably help keep the 605 (and to some extent 615 to Maroochydore via University) on time.  At the moment, it's a lot faster to get to Maroochydore via the 615 at Landsborough than adding almost a extra hour of travel time via Nambour.

If the former, CoastConnect already has dedicated bus lanes planned, not to mention using part of the CAMCOS corridor between Paraerra and Mountain Creek.

[Stillwater]

I am not wedded to CAMCOS Landsborough to Caloundra as a road, merely to point out that a strengthened bus connection to Caloundra from Landsborough is required -- strengthened in terms of efficiency and frequency.  This will become important as Caloundra South is developed.  It would be a shame if, for instance, the direct buses running now are diverted through Caloundra South suburbs along circuitous routes in order to serve that community's local bus needs at the expense of the convenience of express running along Steve Irwin Way and Caloundra Road.

Translink needs to take a look at the way commuter traffic is stuffing up Landsborough -- cars parked through the town for most of the day.  That problem will increase as the first of 50,000 people start living at Caloundra South.  A new car park may have to be develped on the eastern side of the station.  Station car parks have been the subject of heated discussion in other threads.  These relate to cost, but costs of car parking spaces at Landsborough may be less than in suburban Brisbane.

To reduce the private parking at Landsborough, the reliability (of bus to meet train) must be explored so people will have certainty that if they catch the such-and-such bus, it will meet the train.

Interestingly, the Sunshine Coast Regional Council this past week announced it will develop, over time, 12 stand alone p[ark and ride facilities across the Coast.  These will cater for people who will drive a short distance to congretate at a park and ride facility, there to be transported further in their journey by bus.  A park and ride at some point closer to Caloundra, with buses conveying passengers from there to Landsborough may be one way of addressing the problem.

I suppose the frustration for Sunny Coast commuters is that the problems are well-known; they are not being addressed with the sense of urgency required.

As a PS, Sunshine Coast people are not going to be attracted to bus travel when they see the level of industrial relations tactics being played out currently on the Coast.

[Arnz]

I am not wedded to CAMCOS Landsborough to Caloundra as a road, merely to point out that a strengthened bus connection to Caloundra from Landsborough is required -- strengthened in terms of efficiency and frequency.  This will become important as Caloundra South is developed.  It would be a shame if, for instance, the direct buses running now are diverted through Caloundra South suburbs along circuitous routes in order to serve that community's local bus needs at the expense of the convenience of express running along Steve Irwin Way and Caloundra Road.

Translink needs to take a look at the way commuter traffic is stuffing up Landsborough -- cars parked through the town for most of the day.  That problem will increase as the first of 50,000 people start living at Caloundra South.  A new car park may have to be develped on the eastern side of the station.  Station car parks have been the subject of heated discussion in other threads.  These relate to cost, but costs of car parking spaces at Landsborough may be less than in suburban Brisbane.

To reduce the private parking at Landsborough, the reliability (of bus to meet train) must be explored so people will have certainty that if they catch the such-and-such bus, it will meet the train.

I would suggest a separate route for the Caloundra South development, furthermore I would remove the occasional Little Mountain diversions from the 605 and include it with a "separate" Caloundra South/Bellvista bus, and perhaps divert that into the Caloundra Industrial area (The Caloundra West industrial area is currently served by Route 603).

The Route 605 to Caloundra and Kawana will continue as now, but with the occasional Little Mountain diversions removed, whereas a "new milk run" route from Landsborough to Caloundra via Little Mountain, Bellvista/Caloundra South and the Caloundra industrial area would serve the local needs, and at the same time would feed into the hub and spoke system at Caloundra Bus Station and Landsborough Rail.

As for the parking situation, if I recall correctly, there is a 2hr parking limit in the area surrounding the shops (in front of the shops) however the parking restrictions end once you pass the pie shop.  That's where the street parking starts.  As for the eastern side of Landsborough Station, it currently serves as a triangle siding to turn back the occasional steam tours, or the occasional broken down loco.  I would probably support the removal of the triangle siding if it's being re-modeled as a electrified turn-back siding for future Landsborough passenger train terminators, or if the bus interchange is to be relocated to the eastern side as part of the Beerburrum-Landsborough duplication.