Dept of Transport & Main Roads Annual Report 2015-2016 now available

[ozbob]

Department of Transport & Main Roads Annual Report 2015-2016 is now available.

Deadline for tabling is 30 September.  It was tabled ...

Available here > http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/documents/tableOffice/TabledPapers/2016/5516T1703.pdf

[SurfRail]

I'll write a release later on, but basically the LRT figures are stunning:

- 20% patronage increase over year 1 (extra 1.4m or so) - even accounting for 3 weeks less operation due to the 21 July 2014 opening, that is phenomenal growth.

- 39% of the entire patronage increase for SEQ over the last financial year was just on the light rail

- LRT contract costs rose 10% (only half as much as the patronage gain).

[#Metro]

Impressive really, especially for a system that only does 1/3 of the Gold Coast and does not connect to heavy rail (yet).

Will easily reach 10 million with rail connection I think.

[Stillwater]

The Annual Report mentions a document called 'South-East Queensland's Rail Horizons'.

http://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/Travel-and-transport/Rail/South-East-Queenslands-Rail-Horizon

You can download the 'rail horizon blueprint'.

Not that it will tell you anything about exactly what might happen, and when, or what it might cost, or how it will be funded -- the usual deficiency in documents of this type from the Queensland Government.

It states the obvious, this from the Minister's message:

"The passenger rail network is reaching the limits of its capacity and if we fail to tackle the challenges ahead, we will face a transport crisis in the southeast corner.  As demand continues to grow, there will come a time when new innercity capacity is needed. By around 2021 there will not be any capacity to increase services on parts of the network during our busiest peak periods. The network will be operating at its limits."

And this:

"The Infrastructure Australia Audit states that unless transport capacity is improved, congestion on the Brisbane–Gold Coast– Sunshine Coast transport network will cost the economy around $9 billion a year by 2031."

It says the objective of this document is this:

"South East Queensland's (SEQ's) Rail Horizon highlights the need for a better rail system to keep pace with growth and provide a better experience for customers, with more seats on more trains, more stations, shorter journey times and more efficient services. It puts the customer at the heart of the decisions we make to deliver on our rail network vision."

The document reveals for the first time that more than 100 DESIGN OPTIONS have been considered for Cross River Rail.

Solutions?

"A new generation signalling system, the European Train Control System (ETCS), will be put in place in the core of the network where capacity, safety and reliability is needed the most.  Cross River Rail will unlock inner-city rail network capacity, triggering a transformation of the entire regional transport network and providing a platform for regional growth, development and prosperity. Longer trains will also be used on parts of the network to significantly boost capacity and provide more seats to contribute to the government's vision for a modern, high-capacity rail system."

However, the report admits:

"Even with operational efficiencies, such as timetable improvements and signalling upgrades, and the introduction of New Generation Rollingstock from 2016, the current rail network is approaching capacity for both service volumes and passenger numbers.

"Rail demand is expected to double by 2026, and triple by 2036, yet the current rail system will soon be approaching capacity."

Make no mistake, this document is a subtle dig at the federal government to make a decision on funding CRR:

"The new Cross River Rail project will take about seven years to procure, construct and become operational from the time an investment decision is made. This means a decision is required as a matter of urgency."

Central Station is groaning:

"Central station caters for the majority of passengers, with 62 per cent of morning peak rail passengers travelling to the CBD alighting here.  The station's capacity is constrained by pedestrian infrastructure such as platform size and lift and escalator capacity."

"Inner-city platforms are becoming increasingly overcrowded during peak hours. Without any new inner-city stations, Central station would need to accommodate around 57,000 passengers in the morning peak period in 2036, or 133 per cent above the current situation."

Now, here is an interesting line of thought:

"The effectiveness of any improvements to the outer rail network will be dependent on alleviating constraints in the inner-city."

Clearly, the thinking is not to make rail much more attractive for outer rail network users because more passengers will clog the inner-city network.

However, here is the reality:

"The average distance people travel to work will increase as more people move to areas around Brisbane.  People commuting from outside Brisbane into the CBD will make up a larger proportion of the total travel demand, up from 18 per cent today to around 33 per cent by 2036 (during the morning peak)."

This crowd are good at understanding the problem. but light-on when it comes to funding and building the solutions:

"There is an urgent need to develop a more integrated rail network to meet the significant challenges of growth and demand. A framework to guide investment and planning and to achieve a transformation of the rail network has been developed as part of SEQ's Rail Horizon."

This would suggest that the solution is "over the horizon".  (Not going to happen soon, even though the crisis will happen soon.)

We are given some hints:

"Longer trains, coupled with a new signalling system, will contribute to the vision for a modern, high-capacity rail system. In the future, nine-car trains will operate on some parts of the rail network.

"The introduction of longer trains, alongside targeted station platform extensions, can potentially save billions of dollars compared to continued investment in expensive new track infrastructure and signalling upgrades. Nine-car trains will provide a significant boost to
available seating for customers, especially on crowded Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast services."

So there, nine-car trains.

"Stations on the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast lines will need to be progressively upgraded and platform lengths increased to support longer trains."

No doubt, some stations with plywood and scaffold platforms might require some attention too!

Clearly, there will have to be new rail corridors as well:

"Corridors are being protected to allow future expansion of the network to emerging communities such as Flagstone and Caloundra, as well as extensions to the Ipswich and Springfield lines, the Gold Coast line and a possible future North West Transport Corridor."

Question:  How far off is the solution horizon?  No answer.

[#Metro]

Tomorrow never comes, Stillwater.

[SteelPan]

do we see any concrete moves to:

highER-speed link Bris city to Beenleigh
highER-speed Bris city to Toowoomba
highER-speed Bris city to Sunshine Coast