27 Oct 2007: Brisbane A Bus Park!

[ozbob]

Media Release 27 October 2007

Brisbane A Bus Park!

RAIL Back On Track (http://backontrack.org) a web based community support group for rail and public transport has said that a development proposal to cut the number of bus bays at the Roma St Transit Centre from 25 to 5 would create chaos and is a further sign of the flawed transport planning that is now endemic in Queensland.

Robert Dow said:

?It has been reported in the Brisbane press that Developers Bovis Lend Lease and Queensland Rail will upgrade the terminal, with the development application expected before council next week.  The number of bus bays is to be cut from 25 to 5, clearly an unmanageable situation for the many buses that use the centre.  The consequent bus congestion in the CBD will be catastrophic.?

?The Transit centre was sold off in 1996.  When this sale was made there was no guarantee put in place that the pivotal role as a transport interchange would be preserved. Another great example of ?Smart State Myopia?!

?RAIL Back On Track calls on the Brisbane City Council to reject this application outright, and the Minister for Transport, Trade, Employment and Industrial Relations to intervene and protect this critical transport facility for all Queenslanders.?

Contact:

Robert  Dow

Administration
admin@backontrack.org RAIL Back On Track
http://backontrack.org

[ozbob]

CAST has also issued this release.

For CAST see -->  http://sustainable-transport.blogspot.com/

MEDIA RELEASE

The proposal by Queensland Transport to reduce the number of bus parking bays
at Brisbane Transit Centre as part of the Inner Northern Busway project, reveals
yet again that Queensland Transport is out of touch with reality.

The public is clamouring for improved integrated transport services.
CAST cannot find any reference in any of its public relations material relating to the
INB issued by QT, that it had plans to drastically reduce the number of bus parking
bays at the BTC.

It is clear that the operations of the bus service providers would be seriously impacted
by the proposed changes to the BTC.

Where does QT expect the bus operators to park their buses and be able to continue
to provide efficient, integrated transport services to the public?

We can only be grateful to Greyhound Australia for releasing the details of this foolish
proposal to the media and the public.

What other retrograde changes to the transport network are yet to be announced, but
being withheld from the public by QT?

Greyhound says that there has been "no transparency, no engagement..." by QT.

Why were the bus operators not consulted by these proposed changes?

We call upon the Brisbane City Council to reject the development application outright,
when it comes before Council this week.

END OF STATEMENT

Issued by CAST on 29 October 2007 at 1020 hrs Eastern Standard Time

[ozbob]

This also of interest  Roma St key to $1bn grand plan --> http://backontrack.org/mbs/index.php?topic=314.0