Brisbane: Bus Electric Rapid Transit (' Brisbane Metro ')

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> Brisbane Metro plan overhauled to include two lines instead of one

A HUGE overhaul of Brisbane's proposed Metro system has led to routes being significantly expanded while delivering more than $500 million in ratepayer savings.

The redesign, prompted after the project suffered severe teething issues, has seen the system expanded along two lines instead of one, which originally ran from Herston to Woolloongabba.

Following extensive community feedback, one service is now planned to run from the CBD's Roma Street Transit Centre to Eight Mile Plains in the city's south, mostly along the southeast busway.

A second high-frequency line has been designed to run from the Royal Brisbane Women's Hospital to the University of Queensland Lakes in the west, using parts of the State Government controlled northern and southeast busways.

Despite the significant expansion, Brisbane City Council believes the project will cost less than $1 billion, well under the $1.54 billion originally estimated in January last year.

Council has always pledged to pay for the lion's share of the Metro. Lord Mayor Graham Quirk predicted the new plans, using 21km of existing busway infrastructure, would slash travel times by up to 50 per cent.

"Metro services will be expanded to the suburbs and will help address Brisbane's existing congestion and capacity issues with a fast and reliable public transport service to keep Brisbane heading in the right direction," Cr Quirk said.

"People's journeys from the suburbs to the city and home again will be faster, with journeys between Buranda and King George Square 50 per cent faster in the afternoon peak and 30 per cent faster in the morning peak."

The two lines would carry Metro vehicles every three minutes in peak times.

Suburban buses would feed into the Metro, removing some services from the busways to free up space for quicker Metro, BUZ, Rocket and CityGlider services.

Cr Quirk said the revised plans would remove 125 buses from the CBD at morning peak hour.

"It provides a better solution for Brisbane that redirects buses to the suburbs, integrates with the proposed Cross River Rail project and connects our key knowledge and health hubs," he said.

Integration between the State Government's Cross River Rail and the Metro has been a goal of Cr Quirk, with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull tying any rail funding to that result last year.

It means commuters would be able to now change between the Metro and Cross River Rail at the Boggo Rd and Roma St busway stations.

When BUZ, Rocket and CityGlider services were included, Cr Quirk said the Metro could carry up to 22,000 passengers every hour in the morning peak.

"Community and stakeholder consultation played an important role in the evolution of the Metro design," he said. "Feedback identified the need for additional high-frequency Metro corridors that extend beyond the inner city."

A "state-of-the-art" underground station would be built at the Cultural Centre, with upgrades planned to occur at 17 other busway stations to allow commuters to swipe on and off, similar to the system at Roma St train station.

However there are challenges ahead, with the proposals relying on converting Victoria Bridge, linking the CBD to South Bank, to a green bridge for Metro and other bus services.

The move has been supported by council's Labor �Opposition but has so far been resisted by their State Government colleagues.

Cr Quirk said the Metro fleet would include about 60 vehicles, with the capacity to transport 150 people each.

Council plans to undertake community consultation over the next few weeks before finalising a preliminary business case in May.

[ozbob]

Sent to all outlets:

4th March 2017

Brisbane Metro matures into a viable and sensible outcome

Good Morning,

Some good news.  Brisbane City Council has now matured the original ' Metro ' proposal into a more functional plan (see BCC document below).

[ Couriermail --> Brisbane Metro plan overhauled to include two lines instead of one

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/brisbane-metro-plan-overhauled-to-include-two-lines-instead-of-one/news-story/3e28ae5ff20760639a128695d6fb47f4 ]

Using bi-articulated buses on the existing core busway (that is no rails) a significant gain in patronage (22,000 passengers per hour per direction) can be achieved with improvements in the core route and infrastructure improvements.

The two trunk routes proposed are RBWH <> UQ Lakes, and Roma Street station <> Eight Mile Plains.  It is also worth noting that other buses can continue to use the busways, however numbers will be reduced as the bi-articulated buses will allow for more buses to be re-deployed to the suburbs for frequent connectors to the trunk routes, and better local coverage routes.



An example of a bi-articulated bus
http://www.vanhool.be/ENG/actua/Resources/exquicity2401.jpeg

RAIL Back On Track has long suggested that using bi-articulated buses in a trunk and feeder model for the bus network is the logical way forward.

There are significant cost savings over a more limited rubber tyre metro solution.  This new proposal also integrates properly with Cross River Rail.

This new ' Metro ' plan builds up our existing busway asset into a more functional outcome, rather than wrecking it as the original ' Metro ' proposal would have done.   Fixing up the Cultural Centre Bus Station is part of the plan and essential. Using Victoria Bridge as a green bridge negates the cost of another bridge or tunnel.

RAIL Back On Track supports this new proposal using bi-articulated buses.

Congratulations to Brisbane City Council on working through the options and coming up with the right one.

Best wishes
Robert

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

1. Brisbane ' metro ' plan

[ozbob]

This video is for example only - a high capacity bi-articulated bus

[ozbob]

Another example of a bi-articulated bus

Van Hool bi-articulated ExquiCity hybrid bus, in Barcelona

[ozbob]

Van Hool Exqui.City24 Nobina Malmö

[ozbob]

Couriermail Editorial: Travesty if politics stands in way of newly refined Metro system

NEARLY 50 years ago former lord mayor Clem Jones, in a bid to "modernise" Brisbane and respond to the rapid growth in private car use, ripped up the city tram system.

Today, successive local and state governments are still battling to address the mass transit problems that are a direct result of the decision.

As The Courier-Mail reveals today, the latest blueprint for tackling congestion and public transport overcrowding is a revised version of Lord Mayor Graham Quirk's Brisbane Metro project. The first incarnation of this scheme came to light in the middle of last year's local government elections. At the time it seemed not much more than a quickly conceived thought bubble to counter Labor's proposal for light rail.

Now the Metro scheme has been substantially refined.

t is expected to cost about $500 million less than originally thought and it better complements, rather than competes with, Brisbane's planned Cross River Rail expansion. It also abandons the rather odd "buses on rails" idea that was originally mooted.

The interconnectivity, station upgrades and fast links to the outer suburbs are all sensible aims, but the plan still has several significant hurdles to overcome.

Questions over cost, and the extra effect that may have on ratepayers aside, the plan is also dependent on removing cars from the Victoria Bridge and obtaining State Government approval to repurpose busways for use by Cr Quirk's proposed new fleet of mega-buses.

These are not insurmountable hurdles if the shortsighted politics of an election year in Queensland do not see the future of Brisbane's transport system used as a wedge.

As it stands, some of the latest delays surrounding the Cross River Rail link can be attributed to Cr Quirk's original Metro blueprint. This had the network using the same GoPrint site at Woolloongabba that was integral to the planning of the new rail link.

Consequently, the Federal Government has argued more work needs to be done on the $5 billion Cross River Rail project before it considers any funding requests because it did not integrate properly with existing transport networks.

Under the revised council proposal, that is no longer an issue.

That means the Federal Government is fast running out of excuses when it comes to delaying urgent consideration of one of the most vital pieces of public transport infrastructure on the books in Australia today.

It would be a travesty of public policy if politics stood in the way of good planning, simply because of the potential discomfort that could be extracted by leaving a Labor state sweating on funding for a project they had promised to deliver.

Governments at all levels come and go. Cross River Rail, and this new council Metro, will serve us for many decades.

[ozbob]

Politics will not. This is now very good - bi-articulated buses on the busways. Excellent!
> https://t.co/oCKpOoowFE#qldpol@Schrinner https://t.co/oRDAnTMqiI

— Robert Dow (@Robert_Dow) March 3, 2017

^

Politics must not stand in Metro's way > https://t.co/Jutib8QklX #qldpol

— Robert Dow (@Robert_Dow) March 3, 2017

[ozbob]

Well done LM, DM & Council on &#39; metro &#39; plan@Team_Quirk @Schrinner @brisbanecityqld @jackietrad
Integrates with CRR#biarticsrule#qldpol pic.twitter.com/mauJi0GhP4

— Robert Dow (@Robert_Dow) March 3, 2017

[ozbob]

It is still to be determined if the bi-artics will be purpose built for Brisbane, and if they will be electric or perhaps hybrid.

The order for 60 is sufficient perhaps to get a purpose built one for Brisbane. 

I personally favour electric with rapid charging at termini.  The technology does now seem mature.  Electric hybrids (small back up diesel motor) are also very successful and allow some recovery if batteries exhaust.

[ozbob]

BREAKING NEWS
Brisbane Metro matures into a viable & sensible outcome > https://t.co/ze1N2FWHy5#qldpol @Schrinner @jackietrad @Team_Quirk pic.twitter.com/akTpjq4BQl

— Robert Dow (@Robert_Dow) March 3, 2017

[Stillwater]

Sensible outcome, but state government probably will have CRR as its focus and will direct funds accordingly.  The feds will have BCC and the state government knocking on the door at Canberra, seeking funds for CRR and Metro.  Now that both projects are integrated from an operational perspective, CRR and Metro should not be seen as competing projects, but as two elements of a single PT solution.

[ozbob]

It might be time to present both CRR and the ' Metro ' now as an integrated solution to the Feds.  This was a concern for the Feds.
Once business cases finalised go for it!

This would not be entirely unprecedented but might well be for Queensland.

We now need a committment from the opposition to this integrated solution.

[BrizCommuter]

Quirky Metro - Common Sense Prevails! 
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2017/03/quirky-metro-common-sense-prevails.html

[red dragin]

It might be time to present both CRR and the ' Metro ' now as an integrated solution to the Feds.  This was a concern for the Feds.
Once business cases finalised go for it!

This would not be entirely unprecedented but might well be for Queensland.

We now need a committment from the opposition to this integrated solution.

That would be the way to go I reckon. Together the two projects will change Brisbane forever.

[ozbob]

Quirky Metro - Common Sense Prevails! 
http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2017/03/quirky-metro-common-sense-prevails.html

Thanks. 

BrizCommuter:
Quirky Metro - Common Sense Prevails!
> https://t.co/FbIAeci8Gl#qldpol@Schrinner @jackietrad @Team_Quirk @brisbanecityqld pic.twitter.com/XYrI0XK1aW

— Robert Dow (@Robert_Dow) March 3, 2017

[#Metro]

Claimed capacity of 22,000 passengers per hour - higher than existing busway (note: BrizCommuter is yet to verify this claim).   

Assume that we have a vehicle with a capacity of 256 passengers (Fraunhofer IVI Autotram Extra Grand).

22 000 divided by 256 = 85.93 (round up to 86).

That's 86 buses per hour.

There are 3600 seconds in one hour (60 min x 60 sec/min)

Therefore

3600 seconds / 86 buses =  ~ A bus every 42 seconds.

===============================================================

Buses run every 3 minutes, 2 minutes, 60 seconds or 30 seconds give the following theoretical line capacities:

Every 3 minutes: (60 min / 3 min) x 256 = 5120 pphd

Every 2 minutes: (60 / 2 min) x 256 = 7680 pphd

Every 60 seconds: (60/1) x 256 = 15 360 pphd < ---- This is around the current busway capacity

Every 30 seconds: 120 x 256 = 30 720 pphd. <---- metro capacity

The vehicle choice and ultimate design will be absolutely critical. Having one or two doors will not cut it, nor will any kind of on board payment. Any kind of delay like that is likely to cause massive bunching or delays. The overall capacity is very sensitive to the frequency when it is below 60 seconds.

It will also be essential that these buses can reliably run every 30 seconds on the busway. Two buses need to dock at a platform at any one time to avoid having to wait (~ 60 m platforms seem likely).

Buses that have capacities less than 256 passengers/vehicle will obviously need to run at higher frequency to maintain any given line capacity OR will have a lower line capacity overall.

[ozbob]

The bi-artics will have all door boarding, and all ticketing requirements off the bus (as for rail).

Other buses will still be using the busways but lesser numbers than present.

A strong case now for all buses on the busways to have ticketing requirements off the buses, and of course all door boarding.

In fact the busway stations could be fare gated if desired.

[ozbob]

#RACQ welcomes changes to @brisbanecityqld&#39;s #Metro. Council has listened to concerns about road closures & come up with a better plan #BNE pic.twitter.com/QOlXZw3Fde

— RACQ (@RACQOfficial) March 3, 2017

[aldonius]

A strong case now for all buses on the busways to have ticketing requirements off the buses, and of course all door boarding.

In fact the busway stations could be fare gated if desired.

IMHO it's absolutely critical that all busway platforms flip to prepaid.

Fare gates could be tricky; the busway stations aren't built with them in mind and the cycle time is slower than an onboard reader.

[Gazza]

Just do it like G:Link and have them down the platform at various points.
It is done like this on the Orange Line busway in LA.

[ozbob]

Claimed capacity of 22,000 passengers per hour - higher than existing busway (note: BrizCommuter is yet to verify this claim).   

Assume that we have a vehicle with a capacity of 256 passengers (Fraunhofer IVI Autotram Extra Grand).

22 000 divided by 256 = 85.93 (round up to 86).

That's 86 buses per hour.

There are 3600 seconds in one hour (60 min x 60 sec/min)

Therefore

3600 seconds / 86 buses =  ~ A bus every 42 seconds.

===============================================================

Buses run every 3 minutes, 2 minutes, 60 seconds or 30 seconds give the following theoretical line capacities:

Every 3 minutes: (60 min / 3 min) x 256 = 5120 pphd

Every 2 minutes: (60 / 2 min) x 256 = 7680 pphd

Every 60 seconds: (60/1) x 256 = 15 360 pphd < ---- This is around the current busway capacity

Every 30 seconds: 120 x 256 = 30 720 pphd. <---- metro capacity

The vehicle choice and ultimate design will be absolutely critical. Having one or two doors will not cut it, nor will any kind of on board payment. Any kind of delay like that is likely to cause massive bunching or delays. The overall capacity is very sensitive to the frequency when it is below 60 seconds.

It will also be essential that these buses can reliably run every 30 seconds on the busway. Two buses need to dock at a platform at any one time to avoid having to wait (~ 60 m platforms seem likely).

Buses that have capacities less than 256 passengers/vehicle will obviously need to run at higher frequency to maintain any given line capacity OR will have a lower line capacity overall.

Yes, I think it is safe to assume that capacity of the bi-artics will be greater than 150 as published in the Courier Mail. 

Other high frequency buses will still be running through as well.  As the first 60  bi-artics are introduced the peak capacity will climb from the present 18,000 pphpd ( maxpeak) to around 22,000 pphpd (max peak) .  Initially say 3 minute frequency which gives 5102 - ~1300 = gain ~ +3800.  I expect in time that more than 60 bi-artics will be rolled out and frequency will probably go to 2 minute.

[brissypete]

Finally BCC have come up with a smart solution.  Lets hope it actually happens as it would be a real game changer.

With regards to gocard readers gates if done right would be ideal especially with large numbers of people.  Install faster gates than the current ones in use.

Sent from my E6653 using Tapatalk

[ozbob]

LM and @Schrinner announce details of the expanded #BrisbaneMetro with two metro lines #bnepol pic.twitter.com/6HS64GDxvg

— Team Quirk (@Team_Quirk) March 4, 2017

[ozbob]

Now updated at BCC

>> https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/traffic-transport/public-transport/brisbane-metro

They have capacity at 150 but I think it will end up more than that.  A BT 18m has 97 pax capacity (can be reconfigured for 130 capacity!)

Brisbane Metro factsheet - March 2017 ( Ext PDF - 3Mb)

[Mr X]

Good idea. Means we don't have to fund a conversion of the busway capex to take in trams.

Fix up the diabolical cultural centre sh*tfest and we're on to a winner!

[BrizCommuter]

Fix up the diabolical cultural centre sh*tfest and we're on to a winner!

That's in the plans!

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Metro to carry more commuters in one hour than Gold Coast trams in one day

A revised Brisbane Metro plan promises to halve travel times, reduce costs by a third and transport more commuters in an hour than the Gold Coast Light Rail service can do in a single day.

Lord Mayor Graham Quirk unveiled the plan on Saturday, saying the Brisbane City Council would not sit on its hands while the city's bus network was stretched thinner and thinner.

Cr Quirk said the council would also find an alternative to the Go Print site, with problems encountered in trying to secure the site as a maintenance and stabling depot – including significant costs and arguments with the state government – were "just too hard" and making the project "unaffordable".

The site will be left for the Palaszczuk government to use in its Cross River Rail plans, with an alternative being sought after "in the outer suburbs" and a several sites under consideration, according to a spokesman from the Lord Mayor's office.

Cr Quirk also said the new Brisbane Metro system was independent of the state government's plans for the Cross River Rail project, but incorporate two interchange points.

The new Brisbane Metro would be split into two parts. One route would run from Eight Mile Plains to Roma Street and the other from the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital to the University of Queensland Lakes campus.

It would run across 21 kilometres of existing busway infrastructure, incorporating 18 stations and 11 interchange stations, including two with Cross River Rail at Moggill Road and Roma Street.

Cr Quirk said the new plan would mean more people would be reached by the Brisbane Metro system and would reduce the overall cost from $1.54 billion to less than $1 billion.

It would also lead to a 30 per cent decrease in travel time from Woolloongabba to Roma Street in the morning peak-hour and halve travel time in the afternoon rush.

Congestion through the cultural precinct and Victoria Bridge would still be addressed, with an underground bus station to be built at the cultural precinct and Victoria Bridge to be turned green, with plans to remove the 8000 cars that use it every day.

There would be 125 less buses going into city centre and the hourly capacity of the Brisbane Metro, combined with rocket and glider bus services, had increased from 18,000 to 22,000 since the Lord Mayor's initial announcement in January last year - which was more than the Gold Coast Light Rail service achieves in a single day.

Cr Quirk said the improvements showed how important it was to look at the detail and that change could be good.

"We've made changes to all of the original plans we've done – Legacy Way, Go Between Bridge and Clem 7," he said.

"It's going to be a better outcome because not only is it reaching more people but it's also reaching more employment nodes in the city and much cheaper."

"This is very much about squeezing the lemon, it's about creating a world-class facility and upgrading what (infrastructure) we already have, rather than starting from scratch."

Deputy Mayor Adrian Schrinner said the new plan would ensure the city "won't grind to a halt" and nowhere else used anything like the vehicles that were planned to be used for the Brisbane Metro system.

The Lord Mayor described the vehicles as buses, flexible in terms of their movement and not limited to set tracks. Council aimed to have 60 vehicles ready to go by completion, each able to carry 150 passengers.

In a statement, Deputy Premier and Minister for Transport Jackie Trad welcomed the integration of the Cross River Rail and Brisbane Metro systems.

"Cross River Rail is critical to the future of south-east Queensland and will mean better public transport and more jobs right across our region.

"We welcome the integration of Brisbane Metro with Cross River Rail and look forward to seeing more detail and working with Brisbane City Council to deliver the best public transport outcomes for commuters.

"Our public transport infrastructure should complement each other and we need these critical projects for south-east Queensland."

Construction on the new Brisbane Metro was scheduled to begin in 2018 and be completed by 2020.

[ozbob]

LNP Opposition Media release

http://www.timnicholls.com.au/statement-brisbane-metro/

STATEMENT: Brisbane Metro

"The Liberal National Party is a strong supporter of the Metro business case process being led by Brisbane City Council.

"This project will deliver better public transport services for the people of Brisbane and visitors to our city by getting more capacity out of our existing busways.

"The Metro will get hundreds of buses off the road that currently choke the Brisbane CBD and inner city suburbs impacting all road users.

"Nearly 70% of people who use public transport to get to the Brisbane CBD use buses.

"The Metro solves a current infrastructure bottleneck while the cross river rail seeks to address a bottleneck that 'may' occur in 2026.

"The LNP looks forward to Brisbane City Council finalising the Metro business case in May 2017.

"We urge Annastacia Palaszczuk to stop ruling out the Metro, get on board and work with Brisbane City Council."

===================

It is a shame the LNP put out such rubbish at times.  It does them no good at all in the end.

[ozbob]

Wikipedia --> Bi-articulated bus

>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bi-articulated_bus

Good background information.

[Stillwater]

^^ LNP could not resist having a little political dig.  This bickering and political sabotage of a good transport idea for the sake of making the other side look ineffectual, or merely to present an alternative - no matter how flawed (the Cleveland Solution) to be seen to be different -- loses the churlish party votes.

Both sides practice it.  Canberra called for an integrated transport solution for Brisbane.

Why not run the revised Business Case for CRR Mk4 and the articulated bus Metro together as twin elements of an 'integrated transport solution for Brisbane'.  A $6.4b bus-rail plan for Brisbane.

That would really put the acid on the Turnbull government to kick in some dollars, with constructive lobbying from both sides in the lead-up to the next state election.  Such cooperation would be a slap to PHON, whose response would be 'what about the regions'.  Well ALP and LNP are going to have to dig deep for regions to.  CRR/Metro is a game changer for the whole of SEQ, where there are considerable seats to be won.

[verbatim9]

Bogatas rapid bus segregated articulated bus system.

https://www.pri.org/stories/2015-10-21/can-modern-megacity-bogot-get-without-subway

Shared Metro and bus tunnels in Seattle



Brisbane's proposed metro/Artic vehicles should use the latest electric tech. Combination of catenary and battery tech.

[#Metro]

Why not run the revised Business Case for CRR Mk4 and the articulated bus Metro together as twin elements of an 'integrated transport solution for Brisbane'.  A $6.4b bus-rail plan for Brisbane.

That would really put the acid on the Turnbull government to kick in some dollars, with constructive lobbying from both sides in the lead-up to the next state election.  Such cooperation would be a slap to PHON, whose response would be 'what about the regions'.  Well ALP and LNP are going to have to dig deep for regions to.  CRR/Metro is a game changer for the whole of SEQ, where there are considerable seats to be won.

This is a good idea.

The Metro Plan should be given to the Cross River Rail Authority.

Then the CRR Authority should be named PTQ.

That's how you can do it. The legislation for CRR Authority is already passed so would be a case of passing amendments and repurposing it.

BCC Underselling

I don't really understand why BCC is underselling their project.

Why get 150 pax buses when you can get 256 pax buses? The busway does 12 000 - 18 000 pphd and every other train line (except Doomben) can fill up a 1000 pax train during peak hour with no issues so why not get a bigger or the biggest vehicle available?

And I also don't understand how they got 22 000 pphd. If they design the upgrades properly, they can reach metro capacity with a bus every 30-45 seconds which would give 30 000 pphd.

They would need to get rid of any bottlenecks on the network - I am thinking of Queen Street Bus Tunnel entrance where it merges into one lane underground. Ideally, that would be 2 lanes.

These buses can travel on arterial roads as well - Old Cleveland Road and Coronation Drive. Some laws might need to change for that or maybe even special lanes but BCC is big enough to lobby for that. I can't really see why Brisbane needs to be forced into using sub-optimal buses just because a rule says so (overseas these buses run on normal city streets).

Blue Team

It is a shame the LNP put out such rubbish at times.  It does them no good at all in the end.

The party that gave us the genius that is Scott Emerson MP - architect of the BaT fail, the BCC bus review fail and the NGR Rail fail.

[#Metro]

Don't understand why it has to be restricted to busway. Can run on arterial roads:

Malmo - being driven on normal roads



Metz - in a bus lane



Zurich - on normal roads

[Mr X]

Could we/they reconfigure things on the captain cook and send metro 1 along the CCB, past QUT/Parliament and back into the busway, while those who want to get to Mater Hill/South Bank/CC get off at a combined stop at Woolloongabba and switch to metro 2? I can't imagine we'd want to keep all these wasteful/messy peak hour rockets to the 'burbs.

As a proportion, how many SEB users are going/coming from the stations between Mater Hill and the CC?

[ozbob]

The plan for mega-buses to fix Brisbane&#39;s public transport problems. @SimoLove #7News https://t.co/5WqnhlSTfE

— 7 News Queensland (@7NewsQueensland) March 4, 2017

[ozbob]

Sent to all outlets:

5th March 2017

CRR and Brisbane ' Metro ' are an integrated public transport solution

Good Morning,

It is now appropriate to join Cross River Rail and the Brisbane ' Metro ' Bus Rapid Transport plans together conceptually and promote the integrated public transport solution they are for Brisbane and SEQ. Both projects are integrated from an operational perspective, CRR and  ' Metro'  should not be seen as competing projects, but as two elements of a single public transport solution.

Presenting both projects in this light will be seen by many, including the Federal Government and Infrastructure Australia, as the correct path now to public transport resilience, capacity, and hence successful delivery and outcomes.

It is sad that the LNP seem to be the only major player that does not understand the need for Cross River Rail.
[ LNP Opposition Media release  STATEMENT: Brisbane Metro http://www.timnicholls.com.au/statement-brisbane-metro/ ]

The LNP has previously stamped their public transport credentials as very mediocre with such absurd proposals as the ' Cleveland Solution ' and the ' Bus and Train ' tunnel. The are consigning themselves to irrelevancy once again.

Best wishes
Robert

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

[ Attached: https://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=12687.msg188914#msg188914 ]

[ozbob]

Media: &#39; CRR and Brisbane &#39; Metro &#39; are an integrated public transport solution &#39;
> https://t.co/aCxLQnJu8z#qldpol@LNPQLD @QLDLabor pic.twitter.com/su0KlamEXo

— Robert Dow (@Robert_Dow) March 4, 2017

[ozbob]

Sunday Mail 5th March 2017 page 9

All stops pulled for new Metro Cross River Train

[Stillwater]

LNP should take note that the Tim Nicholls' media statement containing the jibe at ALP got no coverage.  The electorate (and the media) have moved on from the blame game.  They want solutions.  If the LNP can't offer solutions, and ones that work, they will be left behind.  You don't need a weekend away at Bundaberg to work that out.

LNP should be a bit more thoughtful about time bombs that they planted when they were in government are now going off on the ALP's watch.  The public are not fools.

[pangwen]

The "existing rail" alignment shown in the map is a bit funny, especially at the southern end... When did they extend the rail line along the Ipswich Mwy west of Archerfield airport?