Tennyson - discussion

[ozbob]

Media Release 3 January 2009

SEQ:  Tennyson Tennis Centre a success, public transport arrangements wanting

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 called for an urgent upgrade of public transport facilities to allow seamless travel to the new Tennyson Tennis Centre.  A Citytrain rail shuttle service between Yeerongpilly and Corinda via Tennyson is needed.

Robert Dow, Spokesman for RAIL Back On Track said:

?The opening of the new tennis centre at Tennyson is very welcome.  Sadly, the public transport arrangements have been found wanting.  There is a railway station adjacent to the tennis centre and it is a major failing to have not included that in the public transport plan.  The walk for many from Yeerongpilly railway station is difficult.  Car parking is very restricted. Shuttle buses are limited from Yeerongpilly and Corinda railway stations and add complexity to what could be a seamless rail journey. Comments on radio 612 ABC Brisbane on January 3rd by patrons have further highlighted the transport issues.?

?Tennyson railway station even in its present neglected state has the capability of accepting three car electric trains.  A three car train can transport 500 passengers. A shuttle between Corinda and Yeerongpilly would be an immediate logical addition to the present public transport options. Not only would it allow patrons to be transported to the centre itself by rail, it would also allow direct access from the western (Ipswich - Rosewood) line. People from suburbs like Toowong could travel direct by rail via Corinda rather than having to travel via Roma St and  then catching trains on the Beenleigh line.?

?In time an upgrade of Tennyson rail station should be considered.  An alternative option would be to build a special events platform next to the centre where the present railway sidings are located.?

Contact:

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org

[dwb]

The walk from Yerongpilly station is difficult?  Don't you just cross at the lights at the new intersection and walk 600m along that beautiful 6m wide path they have all the way through the complex?!  600m is only 8min and totally acceptable, even good for your health, why go spend $25mil on a station that will hardly get used... there are higher priorities for $25 mil in the network, for instance realtime information, maps on timetables, new buses etc

[ozbob]

Did you listen to the people interviewed on radio?  Many have found it a problem.  Problems with crossing the roads, lack of directions, and many not up to the walk.  The overhead walkway that was planned has not been built.  Why not just run trains into Tennyson, it is already there and no cost at all?  This morning on the ABC national Grandstand, they crossed to the tennis commentator. He went on about how great the Tennis centre is, and the said only negative is the poor public transport support ...

Tennyson is a planned TOD as well. It makes sense to support decent public transport.

Some have suggested extending the Citycat as well to Tennyson.  Not sure if that is possible but good to hear ideas being put out there.  Tennyson railway station is functional, I was there the other week.  Even has go card readers.  We used to have a regular service between Yeerongpilly and Corinda.  One of our members has suggested a regular Doomben to Corinda service via Tennyson (3 car).  This could be very useful for many.  Would also allow regular transport between the southern/western line.

Trains coming up from the Gold Coast could also be redirected via Tennyson with a special stop at Tennyson.  Punters for Tennyson would have to ride in the first three cars as they do now on the Monday to Friday services that pass through Tennyson.  Say one or two services on tennis days.  This would give a direct service for people from the Coast. 

We wouldn't raise this suggestion of rail into Tennyson if there weren't issues with the arrangements as they are.

[ozbob]

Here are a couple of recent photographs of Tennyson.  Fully functional station ..  why not use it?




Go card reader, help point in place.



Photographs R Dow 7th December 2008

[dwb]

Firstly I would contest the notion that Tennyson is a TOD - developers seem to just be using that to get extra density, and they are not actually delivering anything but apartments, this is not TOD.

Secondly, I went out there today, and the crowds didn't seem to have any real issues following the yellow brick road. Honestly there is a massively wide brand new path right from the train station to the tennis centre. There were tennis people, cops, and other traffic directing people around.

Of the three issues I found, two would be extremely easily and cheaply resolved. A) lack of actual signage and B) the timings on the lights crossing Fairfield Rd. C) the lack of a lift for disability access on from Fairfield Rd despite the station having recently having new lifts installed.

NB there could be disability access, I didn't cross Fairfield Rd to see due to the crowds, however it looked like there were only stairs.



** Bob, I've got images to attach but the option under additional options just disappeared - how can I post images, without inserting them?

[ozbob]

To post an image Dwb  just up load the images to a suitable host eg. imageshack
This saves server space on our host and overcomes permission/security problems with attachments, not all users can see them.

Once you have uploaded your image to a suitable host, then use the image tag

[img]your url of picture[/img]

it is best to put up images as a thumbnail like this

[imgt]your url of picture[/imgt]

This is how all our photographs are posted.

Back to transport.  It would be an improvement if people could catch a train direct to Tennyson.  Many people have commented on this, yes there is access from Yeerongpilly, but it would be a lot better from Tennyson. There are further residential complexes planned for Tennyson.  I take your point about TOD, but it is being pushed as 'TOD like'.  As you suggest more of a development ploy but nevertheless there will be more people resident in the area.

Also commuter rail access into Tennyson would help solve the problems of people getting there from the other side (Corinda).  The roads into Tennyson from Corinda/Sherwood are a congestion bottleneck. Local residents (comments made to me) would much prefer if transport in from the Corinda side was by rail.  The rail is just sitting there ...

There is a major failing in Brisbane public transport planning generally IMHO.  There is a reluctance to maximise use of existing resources eg. Tennyson loop line, Exhibition loop line, train path variation and so forth.

[ozbob]

There is some discussion on Tennyson here as well -->  http://backontrack.org/mbs/index.php?topic=1722.0

Cheers
Bob

[dwb]

Here's some images of the path from Yerongpilly Railway station to the Tennyson Tennis Centre.

















Points taken about the options of running other services, however IMHO I believe this idea should be articulated further on these merits, rather than the merits of having a station at the tennis centre, which still to my mind DOES have reasonable public transport access.


Bob, thanks for that - I'd been trying to post from Picasaweb, but HAD BEEN using the wrong URL from all this code:

<table style="width:auto;"><tr><td><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/hS6LmGll4yP-N2PG5kHKxw?authkey=6anW2aH2V30&feat=embedwebsite"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_8WlIh_ssQnE/SWEyCuMi3vI/AAAAAAAADNo/cwFmDwYDDsU/s400/Image009.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right">From <a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/daves.05.trip/TennysonAccess?authkey=6anW2aH2V30&feat=embedwebsite">Tennyson Access</a></td></tr></table>

[ozbob]

Thanks for the photos Dwb!  Good stuff.

Regards
Bob

[ozbob]

From the Courier Mail click here!

Tennis centre to get pedestrian bridge link from Yeerongpilly station

Tennis centre to get pedestrian bridge link from Yeerongpilly station
Article from: The Courier-Mail

Patrick Lion

November 18, 2009 11:00pm

TENNIS fans will get a pedestrian bridge at the new Queensland Tennis Centre but will still have to dodge traffic for another year.

Premier Anna Bligh yesterday promised the $9 million bridge from Yeerongpilly train station to the venue would be delivered before the 2011 Brisbane International Tennis Tournament.

The pledge comes after fans at the inaugural tournament in January complained about a dangerous intersection.

Government sources at the time suggested the delays were due to a blowout for the tennis centre from $60 million to $82 million.

But Ms Bligh yesterday blamed the global financial crisis for delaying the bridge, which was linked to the Tennyson Landing housing development which will now be fast-tracked.

"This bridge is an important part of the Tennis Centre," she said.

"We expect construction on the bridge to be completed by January, 2011."

[#Metro]

I have had the pleasure of walking through the Tennyson development area, and I must say that I was very impressed. Lots of NIMBY groups are "afraid" of highrise development outside the CBD area and in stark contrast of the surrounding building heights given the location; but I think it has worked.
Though I would have wished that they left something from the power station behind as a community keepsake.

The bus route (105 and all that) IMHO should run through, not around, the precinct. It should stop directly outside the Tennis Centre front entrance (Logical huh?) and allow the people in the development to catch the bus easily (logical too eh Translink?). Currently 105 seems to keep maximum distance from both these locations.

I think more people use the Yeerongpilly station for their PT needs. I would not support spending money on Tennyson station unless there was increased development around that particular station (and it justified the cost of extra services being put on and a new station). New stations can cost multi-million dollar amounts and (now that we have worked out that running a train for an hour costs somewhere around ~ $1500/run) would be better spent on increasing train (or perhaps even bus) frequency.

Annerly Rd-Fairfield Rd is a major car route; Bus services to Yeronga are fragmented; Consideration for a (Indro)-Tennyson BUZ or at least a revamped route are warranted.

[Emmie]

Can we move this discussion into Open, please Bob?

I agree with much of what you say, Tramtrain, but not the idea of a BUZ that crosses the Indooroopilly Bridge.  This is a dreadful bottleneck.  It isn't wide enough to allow the possibility of a bus lane (and in any case, during peak periods there are tidal flows in both directions, so one lane wouldn't be enough).  So buses would just get caught in the choke point - whereas trains can sail across.

The Tennyson link is a mess, and currently renovating the station isn't a high priority - but should be considered in the light of a wider re-design of train routes.  The Tennyson Tennis Centre is going to attract a lot more PT users IF the new pedestrian bridge is available by January - but it's still a fair walk from Yeerongpilly Station.  For commuters from the new high density developments they are planning there, I think they will need to reconsider Tennyson Station as an alternative.

[ozbob]

Moved from media releases ...

[#Metro]

Google map of the site

I think it is still rather speculative. Tennyson Station users might be previous Y'pilly users, not new users.
And what additional frequency- peak hour only or full blown timetable, plus an upgraded station for a suburb that has ~600 people (ABS,2006) and three bus routes which all have spare capacity
(104, 105, 108- though these really need an overhaul) does not seem worth it IMHO.

Even with additional services, the frequency would have to be increased to that approaching the Beenleigh line (or have a high frequency peak service), because people walk towards the stop with higher frequency, not necessarily the closer one in distance terms.

So to explain my previous post:
1. Not really for a new station or station upgrade unless trials showed big demand
2. If regular 'dead running' trains were passing through the station anyway, these should stop (perhaps as part of a trial to test the idea that significantly more people would catch it)
3. Bus routes need fixing up/re-alignment to go through, not around, the precinct
4. Would support some transfer of Corinda starters/terminators to Tennyson if people caught it (again,trial basis).
5. Rail services during events OK, they do it for Boondall...
6. TOD development on the Austral timber site may make it more viable, but the issue is the industrial nature of the land and nearby (noisy) Pacific National freight/industrial activity centre

Special event CityCat ferry service may be possible, but it would have to use an existing pontoon, as a new dedicated one costs ~$1 million IIRC

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corinda_via_South_Brisbane_railway_line,_Brisbane
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennyson_railway_station,_Brisbane
http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/LocationSearch?collection=Census&period=2006&areacode=SSC31523&producttype=QuickStats&breadcrumb=PL&action=401

[#Metro]

Possible solution: integrate with proposed Greenbank line. Lots of constraints though (rail gauge, electrification, freight issues).
http://backontrack.org/mbs/index.php?topic=2537.0

[stephenk]

600m is quite a sensible distance from train station to event as it spreads out crowds. You will find that many major sporting venues have the nearest train station approx 500m+ away instead of directly adjacent for obvious crowd control reasons. Wimbledon Tennis Centre is well over 1km walk from the nearest tube station!

Personally I think the delayed footbridge should have been built at the start, rather than a few years down the track. But that's the Queensland Government for you!

Outside of event times, the potential passenger figures for Tennyson do not justify a regular train service and the complexities that it would cause. A frequent feeder bus to Yerongpilly would be more cost effective.