Public Transport Queensland - An Independent Transport Authority

[#Metro]

Then it was Corporatised during the 90's and renamed Brisbane Transport.

Must be a strange corporatisation as (a) BT does not have a separate legal identity from BCC, (b) Active and Transport Committee and LM office advise head of division directly, and (c) it does not appear make a profit or pay corporate income tax (equivalents).

[Otto]

Then it was Corporatised during the 90's and renamed Brisbane Transport.

Must be a strange corporatisation as (a) BT does not have a separate legal identity from BCC, (b) Active and Transport Committee and LM office advise head of division directly, and (c) it does not appear make a profit or pay corporate income tax (equivalents).

Damn.. Must have been living in a dream for the last 28 years. Stuff I've seen happen must have just been smoke and mirrors. At least I've always kept my forum name and never changed it on whatever whim suits me at the time. Think it's time to go.
No wait.. I'll just stay on and view the posts of people who I think are the real deal and don't spend their time pushing their own agendas in everyones face ... I very rarely lose my cool, but today is the day you have pushed me too far.

[#Metro]

Damn.. Must have been living in a dream for the last 28 years. Stuff I've seen happen must have just been smoke and mirrors. At least I've always kept my forum name and never changed it on whatever whim suits me at the time. Think it's time to go.
No wait.. I'll just stay on and view the posts of people who I think are the real deal and don't spend their time pushing their own agendas in everyones face ... I very rarely lose my cool, but today is the day you have pushed me too far.

Not saying that at all. Just saying that it seemed odd as it didn't seem to have a seperate legal ID, etc.

Post isn't about you, subject is BT.

Sorry if you were offended, not my intention at all.   

[Stillwater]

A new authority just a bit closer, and that is the word from the Minister.

AAP - 4 Jan. 2017

A change in the management of Queensland Rail is needed in the face of ongoing staffing and roster bungles, Transport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe says.

The minister on Wednesday released three years of driver overtime figures to defend himself against suggestions Labor should have acted sooner as the hours skyrocketed, saying he was "not the creator" of the mess.

"The issue of an increased and over-reliance on overtime is not a new issue for Queensland Rail," he said.

"It is clear there were a series of issues steadily growing within Queensland Rail that were not being managed effectively."

Figures tabled in parliament showed the overtime level jumped from 8238 in February 2015 to 12,015 the following month, after Labor took office.

It has never dipped below 10,000 since and peaked at 18,850 in October last year during a timetable meltdown triggered by the opening of the Redcliffe Peninsula line.

More extensive data shows across 2014, the hours fluctuated from a low point
of 8593 in April to 12,124 in October.

Mr Hinchliffe said during the Liberal National Party's term, services were affected by staffing issues but the party instead made staff cuts and introduced a recruitment freeze.

He again accused QR of providing misleading information about the extent of the problems.
"I certainly think that we need to see a change in the management of Queensland Rail, but that's not just at a senior level, it's at a range of different levels," Mr Hinchliffe said.

Asked how accessible the figures were to the department before Wednesday, Mr Hinchliffe said they were "obtained as a result of specific requests to Queensland Rail".

Acting Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington demanded Mr Hinchliffe end the "blame game" and resign.

"This government has had two years to get this right," she said.

Mr Hinchliffe instead invited her to consider her own party's actions.
"I have not been the creator of this mess, I'm here fixing this up," he said.

[#Metro]

You don't have to cause something to be responsible for it.

I might have a child that throws eggs at the neighbour's windows.

I didn't cause it, but I am still responsible for it.

Hinchliffe should go - he can focus on the Commonwealth Games delivery.

It is not necessary that Hinchliffe cause or be responsible for the mess to resign or be moved.

If he remains in the portfolio, it is bad PR and looks terrible politically. It looks like Palaszczuck has let someone sit there rather than

take action. The opposition will make tonnes of hay out of it come an election if he is still there. With a 1-seat majority, Red Team cannot

afford that if they want to stay in office.

[STB]

Sacking a Minister isn't going to change the situation.  If anything, we need someone stable to get QR back together again and sort out the management and crewing issues going on.

[#Metro]

Sacking a Minister isn't going to change the situation.  If anything, we need someone stable to get QR back together again and sort out the management and crewing issues going on.

But I think that is what Neil Scales has been asked to do.

[MichaelJ]

Queensland Rail have been basking in the glory of 1979 for far too long.  Their network desperately needs some TLC and a 'Transperth Style' Authority and Operator is the only way forward.  I don't think it should be sold by any means but it needs a good restructure to break the back of the tradition they're desperately keeping close to their heart.  The world is a changing place and business (including Government Corporations and Departments because they should act like a business) needs to move with it to remain competitive.

We are facing similar talks in Sydney Trains with the overhaul of Crew conditions, pay, allowances, breaks and all that.  I can only see benefits!

[#Metro]

Queensland Rail have been basking in the glory of 1979 for far too long.  Their network desperately needs some TLC and a 'Transperth Style' Authority and Operator is the only way forward.  I don't think it should be sold by any means but it needs a good restructure to break the back of the tradition they're desperately keeping close to their heart.

TransPerth seems to be well run. My understanding is that it is run directly out of the PTA http://www.pta.wa.gov.au/portals/0/annualreports/2014/content/corporate/organisational-structure.asp

In the Queensland Context, that would be like merging Queensland Rail with TransLink (currently inside DTMR).


TransPerth is not interested in running the Queensland Rail network. There is no money in it for them.

How does one go about making another organisation interested? You pay them a profit margin.

But then you have a new problem - what should that profit margin be? 2%? 5%? 10%? Something else?

The buyer (QLD Gov) in this case wants to pay the lowest it can get away with and the seller of services (rail operator)

wants to maximise the profit margin. What to do?


You take more than one offer. So if any one company asks too much, they get nothing as they lose to their competitor.

In this way you can settle for a number that is mutually acceptable to both sides. It is not as simple as this, you might insist on

qualitative criterion as well (track record, environmental stewardship, local content use, local employment, etc).


A Queensland-Government owned Queensland Rail is unable to do this commercial bargaining, because that is essentially the

government negotiating with itself to both maximise and minimise the profit margin simultaneously.

When you are engaged in self-production (DIY), you don't need a profit margin, but you are directly responsible for management and

figuring out what to do. When you pay someone else, that headache is someone else's business.


Any organisation has to make a choice - whether to produce things for themselves or pay someone else to do it. Each of us in our own

time know this - we don't make our own clothes, we don't build our own cars from scratch, we don't build our own homes. But we

might make our own dinner, do our own cleaning, grow our own vegetables, raise our own children.


Queensland Government needs to decide whether it wants to spend the time figuring out what to do and how to run QR, or pay an

external organisation to figure that all out and run the railway. There is no wrong answer, just different choices.


I am currently visiting Melbourne and using METRO trains. I do not particularly care that my train is 'privatised' or the company is

making a profit. The train is clean and the services run well. And if they don't do a good job, they'll get the boot and a new

management will come in to run things. Whatever the internal rostering or organisational challenges etc is inside METRO the

Victorian Transport Minister does not care - that's METRO's business to work out, and work it out they do.

[#Metro]

This is the structure of TransPerth. It is a division of the PTA.
The PTA is like DTMR, but dealing solely with operations or projects related to PT. For example, it is also responsible for bus services.

(Click to Enlarge)


Source: http://www.pta.wa.gov.au/portals/0/annualreports/2014/images/corporate/organisational-structure-lg.jpg

[MichaelJ]

Privatisation is any form is not the way forward - take a look at the mess that is Melbourne.

A massive maintenance schedule and organisational change - like CityRail in the mid-1990s - is what is required here. Yes, it will cost time and money but the benefits will be great. Sydney was facing some real dark days then but today they're Australia's premier rail operator by a long way.

Not everything Sydney Trains will apply to QR but many of the core concepts could be adopted and amended to suit their requirements. QR could've had bins two years ago listening to Sydney!

[#Metro]

Privatisation is any form is not the way forward - take a look at the mess that is Melbourne.

A massive maintenance schedule and organisational change - like CityRail in the mid-1990s - is what is required here. Yes, it will cost time and money but the benefits will be great. Sydney was facing some real dark days then but today they're Australia's premier rail operator by a long way.

Not everything Sydney Trains will apply to QR but many of the core concepts could be adopted and amended to suit their requirements. QR could've had bins two years ago listening to Sydney!

Have you considered other examples, such as Auckland or Wellington that have contracted rail operators?

I don't believe the Auckland rail network is a mess at all. Infrastructure in Melbourne is very old.

Melbourne isn't running a reduced timetable due to being unable to staff itself and it did not cancel 235 trains on Christmas day at the last

minute. And it isn't allegedly hiring PIs to photograph Paul Pluta's house and face.


Organisational management and change I think is better done by competitive contracting and getting outsiders in.

You have direct feedback - if you make poor decisions, it hits the bottom line. If there are still problems, the entire management is replaced.

I understand that there are concerns about infrastructure maintenance etc but I also think that a dedicated separate budget can deal with

concerns around that.


The issue with Queensland Rail is political management by politicians. You had direct intervention in staffing allocations and numbers. That

wasn't done by a corporation, that was done by democratically elected MPs. There is a role for politicians, but micro-management like

that I think was the issue there. That was further compounded by later decisions by executive management it seems.


Competitive contracting does not automatically mean that the rail is contract is given to METRO or whoever. It can also mean the

foundation of a independent Queensland Rail that runs services in other cities or elsewhere, just as Keolis (operator of Melbourne's Trams)

is a branch of French National Railways SNCF.

Not everything Sydney Trains will apply to QR but many of the core concepts could be adopted and amended to suit their requirements. QR could've had bins two years ago listening to Sydney!

Could you please list out what changes you would suggest to the current Queensland Rail? Would this, for example, include the separation

of longer distance passenger railways (such as Sundlander or Tilt trains) from Queensland Rail, as was done in the Sydney Trains / NSW

Trains split?

[MichaelJ]

Sure.  Some of the things I'd love to see Queensland Rail adopt ...

- Standby Trains stabled at various locations across the network so that they can be deployed to minimise network impact.  Sydney example, we have Standby Trains sitting all over the network (Sydney Terminal, Blacktown, Hornsby, Mortdale,McTown) from about 04:00 until 20:30 and get used when stuff goes wrong.
- Standby Crew at various locations across the network.  Sydney example, like the trains, we have crew stationed around the network to minimise impacts when human error or delay occur.  It's also good for toilet relief.
- QR has already kind of done this but it needs tweaking.  They have Cannon Hill and Northgate terminators to increase capacity through busy areas, just as Sydney has Homebush and Hurstville terminators.  QR, however, need to construct turn-backs so these services don't sit for ages at a terminating location or have the potential to cause delays.
- Empty Running.  Peak hour obviously has more services in the peak direction and so the counter-peak direction doesn't really need a full service.  An example illustrates this best.  Sydney has a train that stops all stations Bondi Junction to Redfern, then express to Hurstville.  Brisbane could do all stations Roma Street to Bowen Hills, then Northgate, Petrie, Kippa Ring.
- Rostering.  Far out, Sydney wouldn't cop this 72 hour roster that QR guys have to live buy; it just wouldn't wash in any capacity.  Get a fortnightly roster happening, issued on the Wednesday prior to it commencing.  Give the crew some stability.
- Sick leave.  You get six casual sick days where no certificate is required and from then on in you need one no matter what or you don't get pay.  Simple.
- Annual leave.  The business tells you when you've got your five weeks' leave each year and if you don't like it or want to split it, you swap with someone else.  That way every employee gets the chance to have leave at every month of the year.  We have a calendar telling you when you'll have leave up until 2025 at the moment.  It's basic format is January one year, March the next, then May, July, September November and then when you get to the end of two years (I think it is), you could back again.
- External applicants.  Abolish the stupid internals first clause that's part of the current Train Crew agreement and start to employ an effective mix of internal and external applicants to change the current toxic culture of entitlement.  Sydney Trains did this many years ago and, by God, we're so much better for it now.  The entitled old crowd are so far out numbered, we're moving forward in leaps and bounds.
- Line Managers.  I'm not just saying this because I relieve in the Shift/Line Manager Role in Sydney Trains.  A team of about 50 Crew (drivers and guards together) are looked after by one Line Manager.  They're basically a one-stop shop for everything Crew.  Need uniform, been naughty and need coaching, want some training, got a problem with another employee, want to take leave or just have a coffee?  They're your one-stop shop!
- Enforce the Network Rules and Company Policy.  If you're not where you should be and its your fault, you cop the fall.  Have your mobile phone while you're in a cab for any reason other than an emergency or business requirement, you cop the fall.  Get the Compliance Officers out and about and enforcing this so that the employees don't run rampant.

I could talk for hours about these things ... There's so many things I've said over the years, I can't remember them all.

Sydney Trains isn't perfect.  I'd love to see us move to harmonise conditions between the Driver and Guard role and keep permanent mates for the day.  I'd love to have a longer meal break (crib break) because its only 20 minutes at the moment with a minimum of ten minutes walking time.  I'd love for us to have our book of days blocked out as the default instead of having to let rostering know we don't want to work before the roster is issued.

If the senior management of QR and the management of Sydney Trains would sit down together, we could both learn heaps from our experience of running a railway.  QR might be having problems at the moment but they've got a wealth of experience they could draw upon and do does Sydney Trains.

EDIT:

- Guards.  Increase their responsibilities.  Customer service, train preparation tasks, safe working, everything.  The can also ditch this rubbish of not watching the train into the platform and one car out of the platform - three cars in, three cars out.
- Random compliance checks.  A compliance officer should be able to turn up at their cab, unannounced, and check that each crew member is carrying the required equipment and it is operational.  The Compliance Officer would refer any discrepancies to the Line Manager for action.
- Performance Plans.  If a breach of the same nature occurs twice in the same rolling 12 month period, you're on a performance plan and being monitored.  No questions asked.  Tears no necessary either.

[#Metro]

^^^ This is a great start, thank you MichaelJ.

There is a lot of things there. And I think this is why it can be hard to get that knowledge/work practices transferred from one organisation to another. There is so much and it is so specific.

If the senior management of QR and the management of Sydney Trains would sit down together, we could both learn heaps from our experience of running a railway.  QR might be having problems at the moment but they've got a wealth of experience they could draw upon and do does Sydney Trains.

This is true, its part of the "experience" an operator brings. You could have a sit down.

Alternatively, Sydney Trains (or whoever) could say "we could do a better job, we would make these changes XYZ to QR's work practices",

and launch a bid for operating the QR rail network. They (or whoever) would have to be paid to make it worthwhile, but perhaps it would

be worth doing. Queensland Rail, would of course, have to be on its toes to make sure that it was ahead of the game with its operations in

an environment like that.

[MichaelJ]

Yeah, it's a hard task, and probably why the NSW Government brought out UK management to improve Sydney.  I call us Network Rail Australia.

As part of the Future Operations program in Sydney, they're examining the potential for us to move toward an aggregate wage.  I'd love to get the QR team in on our discussions because they've had it for years now and could help guide what we should and shouldn't do.

Share the experiences and we'll all be better off for it.

[#Metro]

Following from MichaelJ's suggestion I have started a poll on internal-first recruitment ---> https://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=12624.0

[ozbob]

Has just gotten worse ....   quick!  Another band-aid please!!

Sent to all outlets:

5th August 2016

Public Transport Queensland

Good Morning,

It is a very sad situation with public transport in Brisbane and South East Queensland.  It is headlong into failure.

Our last hope is that a proper statutory authority be formed - Public Transport Queensland*, and given the authority and resources to put things ' back on track '.

TransLink is a failure under the present administrative structure, clearly.  Failure to sort the Brisbane bus network speaks volumes.  All bus regions are suffering as a consequence.

The nonsensical Quirk ' metro ' proposal is just further evidence of the corruption of public transport policy.

Look around Australia.  We are a backwater.

Best wishes,
Robert

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

*Public Transport Queensland > http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=12341.msg177297#msg177297

[ Attached: http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=11952.msg177500#msg177500 ]

[ozbob]

Sent to all outlets:

13th January 2017

Rail Advocate Returns After He Left Queensland Amid Rail Chaos

Good Morning,

I have returned to Brisbane.  It was a pleasure to experience reliable, frequent public transport in Perth and Melbourne.

Sad to return to the mess that is public transport in SEQ.  I suggested last August it was headlong into failure.

Until there are changes in the way public transport is organised, managed and operated in SEQ it will not really improve. 

If anything it is likely to deteriorate further if that is possible. How to improve it is detailed here > https://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=12341.0

Yours in transport misery,

Robert

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track https://backontrack.org

Sent to all outlets:

5th August 2016

Public Transport Queensland

Good Morning,

It is a very sad situation with public transport in Brisbane and South East Queensland.  It is headlong into failure.

Our last hope is that a proper statutory authority be formed - Public Transport Queensland*, and given the authority and resources to put things ' back on track '.

TransLink is a failure under the present administrative structure, clearly.  Failure to sort the Brisbane bus network speaks volumes.  All bus regions are suffering as a consequence.

The nonsensical Quirk ' metro ' proposal is just further evidence of the corruption of public transport policy.

Look around Australia.  We are a backwater.

Best wishes,
Robert

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

*Public Transport Queensland > http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=12341.msg177297#msg177297

[ Attached: http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=11952.msg177500#msg177500 ]

Sent to all outlets:

2nd January 2017

Rail Advocate Flees Queensland Amid Rail Chaos

RAIL Back On Track  Administrator Robert Dow has fled Queensland for a while.



Horrified at the implosion of the state rail operator, Queensland Rail, Mr Dow has chosen to take a break.
On his way to board a flight for Perth, Western Australia, Mr Dow said that Queensland had become a 'failed transport state'.

"I'm going to Perth and then Melbourne, where they have frequent, functional and connected public transport."

"Other RAIL Back On Track Members have headed off to international destinations for top class public transport experience.
This informs our ongoing efforts for improvements."

Mr Dow said that the latest Rail Fail debacle, which saw nearly 1000 services cancelled over a period of months, was just the latest episode of chronic government failures with respect to public transport. We have had one major success, reform of the SEQ fare structure. For that we are very grateful.

He then singled out Cross River Rail, the Brisbane Metro, and failure to reform Brisbane City Council's bus network as examples of failure.

"They have done the Cross River Rail plans three times over, yet they have nothing on the ground to show for it after almost nine years."

"They have this 1.5 billion plus dollar metro proposal that will have trains so small that it will actually reduce passenger capacity and wreck the Brisbane busway network. An absurd nonsense."

"Then they have this anti-rail anti-connections bus network in Brisbane, designed to keep passengers away from trains as much as possible, which is transporting more air than passengers clogging up Brisbane CBD. Time the bus network was reformed."

Mr Dow said that businesses would now think twice about investing or setting up in Brisbane. He said that businesses needed certainty that their workers could actually get to work, and that infrastructure promised actually got built.  We need more than casinos, we need a reliable transport network!

"In Victoria, they actually build things, rather than just screen video animations about building things."

"Over in Perth, their rail network now transports more passengers than Queensland Rail and the trains come every 15 minutes on most lines.
I look forward to travelling on a frequent service network well connected with feeder buses."

"It's ridiculous, and an embarrassment the state of the public transport in SEQ."

"We look forward to some real progress now in 2017. We cannot afford to grind to a halt."

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track https://backontrack.org

[ozbob]

Latest: ' Rail Advocate Returns After He Left Qld Amid Rail Chaos '
> https://t.co/C2AV3agR7P#qldpol@QLDLabor @LNPQLD @QldGreens pic.twitter.com/7wEfsDaneR

— Robert Dow (@Robert_Dow) January 12, 2017

[ozbob]

^ for interest

Photograph (left) at Butler WA.  Butler <> Mandurah line, 15 minute frequency around the clock higher frequency at peaks.

Other photograph Bentleigh Victoria.  Frankston line, 10 minute frequency around the clock, higher frequency at peaks.

No other comment needed ...

[SteelPan]

SEQ is now reaping the sad results, of decades of "2nd tier thinking" from right across the political spectrum, regards rail. Not from just the political class either, but the truth is, rail gets little "emotive capital" among the population generally.

CRR has become - as important as it is - the "Holy of Holies" for govt thinking, the truth is however, it's now just part of a much bigger set of urgent rail needs for the region.

CRR + Higher-Speed to GC, SSC and Toowoomba are just the Tier One projects the region needs.......

That in 2017, two cities, the size of Brisbane and Toowoomba sit so close to each other and there's no serious rail connection.......bizarre...just bizarre! Yet, all the pollies will rant and rant about house prices etc, Toowoomba has enormous capacity, to help take living cost pressures off the SEQ coastal areas, but people won't look at it, as a serious option, until a quality rail link exists!

[#Metro]

A Nine-Point Radical Public Transport Rescue Plan

1. Fire the entire QR board

2. Fire the ELT

3. Fire the Minister for transport

4. Remove TransLink from DTMR and make into an authority (PTQ)

5. Equip the new TransLink (PTQ) with the power to hire, the power to fine, the power to sue and the power to FIRE!

6.There is no justification for moving Queensland Rail or Brisbane Transport into PTQ or keeping them protected gov't monopolies.

Operators and regulators should be kept strictly separate - that means they are not the same organisation, and they are de-monopolised.

7. Privatise Queensland Rail and Brisbane Transport by share sale (maybe one company can do both buses and trains).
Don't do a good job - you go bankrupt!

8. Get PTQ to monitor operators, and if they don't perform - fine them. If they still don't perform BOOT THEM!!

9. Regularly open contracts to competition, perhaps 8 years + 2 year extension contracts.



Brizcommuter becomes AucklandCommuter
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2017/01/brizcommuter-becomes-aucklandcommuter.html

ALL bus and train services in Auckland, NZ are privatised. If they don't perform, Auckland Transport boots them!
Time to bring accountability and responsibility to SEQ public transport!

Services are coordinated by Auckland Transport under the AT Metro brand. Rail, bus, and ferry operations are all privatised. Auckland's train services are operated by Transdev Auckland, with the trains and stations belonging to Auckland Transport and the rail infrastructure belonging to KiwiRail.

[ozbob]

I am sure change is on the way ... the present basket case of PT failure cannot be allowed to continue ..

Band-aids no good, radical reconstructive surgery is needed.

[#Metro]

The current suggestions seem to be centred around keeping monopoly / government power over Queensland Rail as #1 priority

over everything else, including service standards enforcement and quality.

Politicians (Newman or anyone else) should no longer be able to pull the strings at QR. That's why QR must be made independent of government - entirely.

Management must be responsible for the quality of their service. Bad management or decisions should not be rewarded with cash bonuses (which QR paid) and certainly NOT contract renewals or extensions!

Auckland's buses and trains are all privately contracted and both managed to co-operate with huge transformational change. Contrast that to Brisbane where we still don't have buses going to train stations, and can't even open the bus back door for boarding passengers.

Standards need to be enforced. How do you enforce standards? Use THE BOOT!

[ozbob]

Errrr  nope.  My suggestion is QR is relegated to operator.  It then has to compete.  There will clearly be a transition under a PTQ structure, but no reason why QR can not be competitive. In the same way BT will have to compete.

[#Metro]

Errrr  nope.  My suggestion is QR is relegated to operator.  It then has to compete.  There will clearly be a transition under a PTQ structure, but no reason why QR can not be competitive.

We both agree on the PTQ bit.

I think where we disagree is on the whether Queensland Rail or Brisbane Transport should be a division of
PTQ. (Happy to be corrected)

One of the reasons I didn't see a need for QR or BT to be divisions of PTQ is because it raises the question then of why isn't say Surfside Buslines then a division of PTQ? Or Brisbane CityCats a division of PTQ?

Melbourne's METRO isn't a division of PTV. I am not sure that V/Line is either (happy to be corrected).

[ozbob]

Errr nopee.  I said rail would be a division of PTQ.   There would be other divisions of PTQ - PTQ has to have a structure to enable its functions.
There would no longer be replication between BCC, QR, TransLink and TMR. 

QR is just another operator of which there would be 20 plus including bus etc. 

The rail division would administer the contracts for heavy rail, light rail.  The actual implementation and operation is the role of the successful operator.  The only concession I would make is that for the first 3 year period QR is the heavy rail operator on the understanding that at the expiration of 3 years - open tender.

[#Metro]

The rail division would administer the contracts for heavy rail, light rail.  The actual implementation and operation is the role of the successful operator.  The only concession I would make is that for the first 3 year period QR is the heavy rail operator on the understanding that at the expiration of 3 years - open tender.

I can agree with the "grace time" bit, as clearly a major reno is required in QR - we can all agree on that.

Well if that is the case then I can agree there then, because Queensland Rail is demonopolised and must take responsibility for

its own business survival from thereon. Very well.   

[SurfRail]

The current suggestions seem to be centred around keeping monopoly / government power over Queensland Rail as #1 priority

over everything else, including service standards enforcement and quality.

Politicians (Newman or anyone else) should no longer be able to pull the strings at QR. That's why QR must be made independent of government - entirely.

Management must be responsible for the quality of their service. Bad management or decisions should not be rewarded with cash bonuses (which QR paid) and certainly NOT contract renewals or extensions!

Auckland's buses and trains are all privately contracted and both managed to co-operate with huge transformational change. Contrast that to Brisbane where we still don't have buses going to train stations, and can't even open the bus back door for boarding passengers.

Standards need to be enforced. How do you enforce standards? Use THE BOOT!

The best railways around the world are NOT privately owned or operated though.  The only ones which are exist in circumstances throughout Asia which are so far removed from SEQ that the comparison is irrelevant (eg Singapore MRT, Hong Kong MTR, JR etc).  How do you reconcile the performance of a system like Transperth with ours?

[achiruel]

Melbourne's METRO isn't a division of PTV. I am not sure that V/Line is either (happy to be corrected).

Considering the annual report was tabled in Parliament, I'm 99% sure V/Line is a GOC.

[#Metro]

The best railways around the world are NOT privately owned or operated though.  The only ones which are exist in circumstances throughout Asia which are so far removed from SEQ that the comparison is irrelevant (eg Singapore MRT, Hong Kong MTR, JR etc).  How do you reconcile the performance of a system like Transperth with ours?

Contracting provides a mechanism to remove a bad operator, and also removes politicians from internal business decisions such as HR - something absolutely essential given the behaviour of Queensland politicians.

It is very simple why TransPerth performs well - Campbell Newman wasn't elected to WA, so he couldn't ministerially direct TransPerth to cut staff in the training division. Perth had a very poor rail network for many decades, to the point they were going to shut the network and replace it with buses.

The buses work to feed the trains - the former Perth state bus company was divided, privatised and sold in the 1990s.
There was no BCC style council to block buses running to trains. Unlike here where toxic politics saw BCC scuttle the bus reforms
and keep its anti-interchange bus network philosophy.

TransPerth is completely open to this political meddling mechanism though. Perth just hasn't had its turn yet.
(Or perhaps it has, and managed to survive - remember the politicians were going to shut it down permanently)

If you had the conditions align, you could recreate a similar situation in Perth. Particularly so if a gov wide debt reduction/staff cuts programme was put in place and that was co-incident with a new line opening.

Brizcommuter has just been to Wellington and Auckland - where the trains are privately contracted. It's not Hong Kong, but they still do it. Why do we have to defend and protect monopolies??

[HappyTrainGuy]

Privitising isn't the only solution which you seem to be so gun ho about that you can not see anything else. In the past QR has wanted to improve many things across its network but hasn't been able to do so due to the treasury not willing to fund it or higher ups stopping talks. The same applies to urban planning. And contracting isn't the best. You keep bringing up Metro but you fail to mention the shady tactics that they use to exploit holes in the contracts so shareholders get more money while passengers have to deal with poor infrastructure and trains randomly turning express all because some 130 year old woman took her time getting on the train which delayed it by 3 minutes.

As surfrail has said some of the best run railways in the world are Government owned. And that's because their Government allows it to flourish by throwing money at it for proper infrastructure, proper public transport connections and the like. Just look at the amount of trouble that has gone into the CAMOS, Trouts Road and CRR projects. Any of those places with proper Government backing would have going straight ahead with them. Meanwhile our Governments are building tunnels which duplicate Gympie Road, p%ssing away money on KSD, spending insane amounts of upgrading the Bruce Highway and cutting funding/sabotaging public transport and the railways. The railways are pretty much treated in the same way that active transport is treated. A couple bucks here and there to keep the masses happy and splurging everything to keep anyone with a car happy.

[#Metro]

If I have a rail company and want to challenge QR, I should be able to.

You don't reward poor performance with cash bonuses contract extensions.

And certainly not after proposing 11 months of cut timetable.

[James]

The problem is the incompetents which exist at the ELT level in QR. Put the broom through it and the problem is solved. What about BCC? Change the BCC Act, upload BT to the state government. "Anti-transfer" stuff solved. (As a further note, you could shift the bulk of infrastructure to state too, to avoid BCC just pouring money into roads out of spite).

You are never going to take the issue away from political meddling. If a politician wants to meddle, they will do so. If the people fall hook, line and sinker for it, that's their loss and I feel no sympathy for either the pollies or the people when the wheels fall off.

Privatisation is not a silver bullet.

[#Metro]

No more monopolies. Don't perform - goodbye!!

Even politicians have to face competition every election cycle, why should Queensland Rail get protected sacred cow status?

I don't see anyone suggesting that Surfside Buslines be uploaded to the state government either, so again one has to ask why Brisbane Transport  should receive sacred cow status.

[HappyTrainGuy]

If I have a rail company and want to challenge QR, I should be able to.

But you don't. And if you did you would know a lot more especially with this regard. The issue just isn't the operator. Its the whole PT setup and the way its treated in the state. Translink was designed to be the one stop shop for providing PT in SEQ and all throughout its life its just been a limp wristed exercise with outside influences and poor funding. And with all the BT bashing they are simply playing by the rules. No different than Metro playing by the rules by changing trains to run express mid route if its only a few minutes late to achieve on time running. BT has the money backing of the BCC and can get away with it by playing all the rules. Other operators like Thompsons don't and can only play by so many rules. You may not like it but hey, that's the rules. Just like people in Melbourne wanting Metro to stop station skipping but legally can't force Metro to do so as they want to maximise on time performance so their shareholders can get a return on their investment and preventing being finned by the Victorian Government for late running by randomly changing stopping patterns mid trip.

[#Metro]

The current model cannot continue, it has failed and must go!!

[ozbob]

As Mr Metro has highlighted previously.  It is worthwhile to look at the organisational structure of WA's PTA as it was in 2014.

This is a good model perhaps for PTQ  - obviously it would be different but shows the general idea.

http://www.pta.wa.gov.au/portals/0/annualreports/2014/content/corporate/organisational-structure.asp

[Otto]

I have a question.

In WA, they have an Upper House and Lower House where as in Queensland we have only the Lower House .

In theory, would the Upper House in WA have been able to prevent the actions of the Newman Govt Razor Job done on QR ( TransPerth in WA ) had this happened in WA instead of QLD ? Could an Upper House in QLD have been able to prevent the Newman Cuts ?

Interested to know..

[#Metro]

In WA, they have an Upper House and Lower House where as in Queensland we have only the Lower House .

Thanks for the question.

The answer is - No.

WA Upper House is held by the Lib/Nat coalition currently. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Australian_state_election,_2013

Victoria has two houses, and Kennett managed to privatise buses, trains and trams despite that.
There were also mass public servant firings.

- 350 schools closed, 7000 teaching positions terminated
- 16 000 PT workers (I guess a lot were tram conductors?) fired and replaced with ticket machines
- mass street protests

Newman was elected with a landslide majority, by one of the largest margins in Queensland History.