16 Oct 2010: SEQ: Gold Coast Light Rail a Golden Opportunity

[ozbob]

Media release 16 October 2010

SEQ: Gold Coast Light Rail a Golden Opportunity

RAIL Back On Track (http://backontrack.org) a web based community support group for rail and public transport and an advocate for public transport commuters has re-affirmed the importance of the Gold Coast Light Rail project both for the Gold Coast and the Queensland economy at large (1).

Robert Dow, Spokesman for RAIL Back On Track said:

"The steady progress and commitment to the Gold Coast Light Rail project is very encouraging. With the Gold Coast being a bustling 24 hour economy and major event hub, the construction of the Light Rail project will be crucial in supporting tourism, local jobs, the local economy and attracting major events."

"Light rail's high capacity, smooth ride and zero local exhaust does a superb job of moving very large crowds of people at events in a very fast, efficient, safe and orderly way. When complete, it will be a world class system the Gold Coast can be rightfully proud of and a first for modern light rail in a non-capital city area in Australia."

"Many people in Brisbane are green with envy over the Gold Coast Light Rail project. Brisbane has had multiple failed light rail project  proposals; failure not due to technical issues but for want of sound organisation, secure funding and communication (2). Light rail in Brisbane is a permanent feature of Brisbane's local and state elections as increasingly full buses pass hapless commuters. And Brisbane has never forgotten how its workhorse tram system was shut down in favour of the car and motorways (3)."

"In Brisbane during 1944-45 trams carried around 160 million passengers, this is more than the present bus and rail systems combined!  In the final year of operation there were 68 million passengers.  Today, an under-resourced heavy rail system, and an overloaded and inadequate bus system struggle to meet the considerable public transport demands. Light rail is also needed in Brisbane. Sustainable light rail and proper resourcing and expansion of the heavy rail network will gain the sustainable mass transit capacity that is needed now and in the future."

"The Gold Coast Light Rail project will be a strong selling point for the Gold Coast to grab and bag the 2018 Commonwealth Games bid and all the economic benefits that winning that will bring to the Gold Coast and Queensland through visitors, jobs created and international publicity."

"The careful coordination and continued public support of all three tiers of government in bringing this vital light rail project to life is to be applauded and is a rare but welcome example of all three levels of government working together and funding something as complex as a rapid transit project."

"Brisbane couldn't manage to do it; at least one city in Queensland is managing to get it right!"

References

1. 7 July 2009: SEQ: Gold Coast light rail rapid transit is the way forward   http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=2476.0

2. Light Rail down under: Three strikes and you are not out!   http://trb.org/publications/circulars/ec058/15_03_Turner.pdf

3. 9 April 2009: Brisbane:  Forty years since the trams went silent   http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=2117.0

Contact:

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org

[ozbob]

Discussion thread --> http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=546.0

[colinw]

Good on you Bob (and TT), that press release is GOLD in my opinion.  

I am very enthusiastic about the Gold Coast Light Rail, which in tandem with the light rail resurgence in Adelaide clearly shows the way for LRT in this country, particularly for regional centres.

My dad often reminisces about riding the trams in Newcastle in his younger days - he studied metallurgy at the Newcastle Tech (now uni) & BHP in the 1940s - and talks of a city that very much loved & used is trams, run down as they were by then.

It would be great to see some of these larger regional centres get back on track.

[#Metro]

Had a trip back from the Gold Coast today!!

Traffic jams all through the Gold Coast Highway on a Saturday afternoon. Madness. Buses stuck in traffic.
They already have bus priority measures such as bus lanes on the Gold Coast Highway (so much for Coronation Drive!)

Light rail is a no-brainer down there. Huge tower developments in areas like Broadbeach, Southport, Surfers Paradise, and people want to use bus?   Even the buses down there are getting good loadings on the weekends. Lots of people with surfboards and awkward items as well.

Light Rail was needed on the GC a while ago! IMHO when it opens it will probably exceed patronage forecasts. Bus connections to Helensvale are also not very direct either. Actually they are terrible, so much looping around suburbs and traffic calmed streets made for an excruciatingly slow journey ~30-40 minutes I would guess.

LRT should be extended north to connect to Helensvale station. LRT being expensive and rail, all of this back street running will be avoided once LRT is in with a no-nonsense direct and frequent route. Northern extension is probably the important one as it will connect rail and be a mass feeder.

Southern connection to Gold Coast Airport might be viable too. It will be a balance of whether to extend the heavy rail line first (faster but further away from where the action is, requiring a connecting bus and more expensive at about $100-$150 million/km) or whether to extend the light rail (slower service but more destinations, more direct and much much cheaper at $35 million/km).