Roads - articles and discussion

[Fares_Fair]

Quote from above...
Without these works and adequate funding, the RACQ predict between 300 and 400 people will die in crashes on the Bruce Highway over the next 10 years.

whoa, 30-40 deaths every year on the Bruce Highway (RACQ predicted figures)

I would be interested to know the predictions statistically that #2tracks rail duplication Beerburrum to Nambour may have on these types of figures, especially in regards to trucks being removed from the Highway once the current freight bottleneck is removed.

[ozbob]

The Guardian --> Urban sprawl and lack of public provision leads to 'transport poverty'

[ozbob]

JOINT STATEMENT
Premier
The Honourable Campbell Newman

Minister for Transport and Main Roads
The Honourable Scott Emerson

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

New roads and more jobs for the Sunshine Coast

Plans for a $440 million road project to slash congestion for drivers between Caloundra and Maroochydore and create 2,500 jobs for the Sunshine Coast have been unveiled today.

Premier Campbell Newman said the proposed infrastructure project addressed concerns raised by Sunshine Coast members that local roads would become congested when the Sunshine Coast University Hospital opens in 2016.

"While Labor failed to invest in transport infrastructure on the Sunshine Coast, the LNP has a strong plan to build a brighter future for this region," Mr Newman said.

"We want to ensure commuters spend less time in traffic and more time with their families.

This project means commuters can get to work, to schools and to the new hospital on time and without having to sit in traffic jams.

"We are developing plans for $440 million of road works to upgrade the Mooloolah River Interchange and to reduce congestion on Nicklin Way and the Sunshine Motorway, while providing direct access to the new hospital.

"This project has the potential to deliver up to 2,500 jobs during construction and will ensure Sunshine Coast families benefit from our plan to deliver better infrastructure and planning."

The $440 million of works would include:

    four lanes on the Sunshine Motorway between Kawana Way and the new interchange
    a new connection from Nicklin Way to Brisbane Road
    a new two-lane Kawana Arterial road from Kawana Way at Parrearra to the Mooloolah River interchange.

Transport and Main Roads Minister Scott Emerson said the LNP Government's new plan would address capacity issues while saving taxpayers millions.

"Labor had a $1.5 billion thought bubble, but failed to act on this important congestion issue for years.  They never budgeted for it and had no intention of delivering," Mr Emerson said.

"I tasked the department to come up with a smarter, more cost-effective design that would reduce congestion and address capacity issues, while spending a third as much.

"It is now up to residents to provide their local members with feedback on whether this project is a priority and should be funded through our Strong Choices Investment Program."

Mr Emerson said consultation on planning and design will continue and should be finalised by early 2015.

[ENDS] 19 August 2014

[paulg]

Re: Mooloolah River interchange

This is interesting, the proposed design can be found on this page:
http://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/Projects/Name/M/Mooloolah-River-interchange-Kawana-Arterial-and-Sunshine-Motorway-upgrade.aspx

No mention of the rail corridor, though you'd hope they will retain room for it in the design. It looks like they have decided on an option with much higher private property impacts than the previous Labor proposal.

Cheers, Paul

[paulg]

Re: Mooloolah River interchange

This is interesting, the proposed design can be found on this page:
http://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/Projects/Name/M/Mooloolah-River-interchange-Kawana-Arterial-and-Sunshine-Motorway-upgrade.aspx

No mention of the rail corridor, though you'd hope they will retain room for it in the design. It looks like they have decided on an option with much higher private property impacts than the previous Labor proposal.

Cheers, Paul

Here is the old design developed under the previous government: http://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/~/media/Projects/M/Multi%20Modal%20Transport%20Corridor/Technical%20Posters/mmtcmaindrivetomrioptionlayout.pdf

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Is an alternative Brisbane to Caloundra link closer?

[Jonno]

Let the Induced Demand and economic damage begin!

[paulg]

It's so sad that there is not one mention of the rail duplication project north of Beerburrum, let alone the building of the CAMCOS route to Maroochydore. Surely that would be a big vote winner on the coast - I can't imagine that everyone on the Sunshine Coast enjoys being tied to their cars. Meanwhile, the Gold Coast gets a shiny new light rail system and higher frequency heavy rail once the BAT project is built and additional segments of the line are duplicated. The Sunshine Coast is missing out!

[dancingmongoose]

Brisbanetimes --> Is an alternative Brisbane to Caloundra link closer?

First thing I thought was progress on CAMCOS. I officially qualify for idiot status.

[SurfRail]

Congratulations, you aren't cynical!

We'll fix that soon enough.

[ozbob]

JOINT STATEMENT
Premier
The Honourable Campbell Newman

Minister for Transport and Main Roads
The Honourable Scott Emerson

New signage plan saves Queensland drivers time

Queenslanders driving to work and home to their families will be able to get there safer, more quickly and with fewer frustrations with an improved signage system around roadworks.

Premier Campbell Newman joined Minister for Transport and Main Roads Scott Emerson to inspect progress on the $296 million Yeppen South project site near Rockhampton, and announce the new approach that delivered on the election promise to provide better infrastructure and planning.

"One of the greatest frustrations for drivers is having to slow to a crawl when there are no roadworks taking place – whether that's at night or on the weekend," Mr Newman said.

"Under this new approach, engineers will be required to return signs to a safe speed when works aren't being carried out.

"At the same time we'll be working with police to step up enforcement around roadworks.

"We will be rolling this out to roadworks across the state to deliver more consistent signage, crack down on speeding and educate drivers and traffic managers of the dangers around roadworks.

"Labor neglected roads for more than a decade and did not consider it to be a priority, but we know our major highways are an economic lifeline.

"Improving signage will make them more efficient and eliminate the delays that impact thousands of people."

Mr Emerson said the $8.5 billion deal with the Federal Government to fix the Bruce Highway, including a record $770 million this year, was a great example of where the new roadworks system would benefit drivers on long journeys.

"Our new Spruce the Bruce campaign is about asking Queenslanders to be patient and drive safely as we fix the Bruce Highway, but we still want to make sure we are doing everything we can to get drivers where they are going sooner," Mr Emerson said.

"Our new approach will see drivers being better educated on the delays and will reduce the wait time as much as we can.

"We're delivering on our promise to provide better infrastructure and planning in the most efficient way possible.

"We're spending $4.8 billion in 2014-15 on roads, a 37% increase compared to Labor. Over the next four years we'll spend $18.1 billion on road projects aimed at getting Queenslanders home safer and sooner.

"I thank all drivers for their patience and assistance as we future-proof our Queensland roads."

All drivers are encouraged to measure our performance. If you see something that can be improved around roadworks, call 131940 or let us know at www.tmr.qld.gov.au/Contact-us

[ENDS] 22 August 2014

[techblitz]

Couriermail --> Council travel time study reveals Stanley St the slowest corridor

Although it probably does contribute to the stanley st bottleneck...the southbound ipswich rd is a big omission from that list.......clearly buses have taken a lot of cars off that road.

[ozbob]

^

Only inner corridors mentioned, wait till full report.  Southbound (west) Ipswich Highway in PM peak is a mess to Oxley, as it is inbound.

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Council accused of "spinning" congestion figures

[ozbob]

Twitter

Dave Andrews ‏@chopperdaveqld

The usual carpark on the Ipswich Mwy IB from Wacol to Oxley #bnetraffic #chopperview

[ozbob]

Media Release
Minister for Transport and Main Roads
The Honourable Scott Emerson

JOINT MEDIA STATEMENT: Earth moves for Gateway upgrade

Work is underway on the billion dollar Gateway Upgrade North, with Fulton Hogan moving in to begin major earthworks.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Warren Truss said the work would take place alongside the motorway at Nudgee and to the north of Nundah Creek.

"Moving hundreds of thousands of cubic metres of soil and rock over the next 12 months will ready the project for the commencement of major construction mid next year," Mr Truss said.

"It shows our commitment to improving productivity and driver safety that a year after the election, we have bulldozers on the ground for this enormous project."

Queensland Minister for Transport and Main Roads Scott Emerson said the earthworks would lay the foundation for widening 11.3 kilometres of motorway between Nudgee and Bracken Ridge from four to six lanes.

"Works will also include upgrading the Nudgee interchange and widening the Deagon Deviation to two lanes in each direction," Mr Emerson said.

"Construction of the new lanes is expected to start in the middle of next year and take approximately three years to complete, weather permitting.

"For the 75,000 vehicles on this stretch of motorway each day, this upgrade can't come soon enough."

An industry briefing session will be held by Queensland Motorways Limited, which has been engaged by the Queensland Government to manage the delivery of the major works package.

Interested parties will be invited to tender on the project following a registration of interest process.

The Gateway Upgrade North is jointly funded by the Australian and Queensland governments.

[ENDS] 10 September 2014

[ozbob]

Media Release
Treasurer and Minister for Trade
The Honourable Tim Nicholls

JOINT MEDIA STATEMENT: Toowoomba Second Range Crossing shortlist announced

A shortlist of proponents selected to submit project proposals for the Toowoomba's Second Range Crossing has now been finalised, bringing the bypass project to an important milestone.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Warren Truss said three consortia have been selected to progress to the Request for Proposal stage of the $1.6 billion project.

"It's a pleasure to announce that, from a strong industry response to the Expressions of Interest proponents, Range Connect, RangeLink and Nexus have been shortlisted," Mr Truss said.

"These consortia were chosen following their demonstrated capacity and capability to deliver on a project of this magnitude and recent relevant experience on various infrastructure projects.

"This marks yet another milestone in the long-awaited project's procurement, following more than two decades of talking, planning and scoping."

Federal Member for Groom Ian Macfarlane said the Australian and Queensland governments will work with the private sector to deliver a world-class asset.

"We have a strong field of consortia and a healthy level of competition to reinforce innovation and value for money in the design, delivery, operation and maintenance of the road," Mr Macfarlane said.

"The Toowoomba Second Range Crossing is the centrepiece of major economic development taking place in our region and it is welcome news for people across Toowoomba and the Darling Downs to know the preparations for construction are underway."

Queensland Treasurer Tim Nicholls said shortlisted proponents would be provided with Request For Proposal documentation in coming weeks, officially kicking off the interactive tender process.

"This project is expected to support more than 1,800 full time equivalent jobs during the three year construction phase, with the road expected to be operational from mid to late 2018," Mr Nicholls said.

"Toowoomba Second Range Crossing is one of the State's highest infrastructure priorities, with $321.25 million allocated in the 2014-15 Budget."

Range Connect, RangeLink and Nexus will now have until early 2015 to submit their detailed proposals for the Toowoomba Second Range Crossing to the Government for evaluation, with the final proponent set to be announced soon after.

For more information visit www.qld.gov.au/tsrc

[Ends] 10 September 2014

[ozbob]

Twitter

Dave Andrews ‏@chopperdaveqld

Western Fwy IB on the brakes as per usual from Moggill Rd #bnetraffic #chopperview

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> New ReachPoll survey shows majority of Queenslanders oppose building of more tolls roads

[pandmaster]

Couriermail --> New ReachPoll survey shows majority of Queenslanders oppose building of more tolls roads

Fantastic, Brisbane's third road tunnel. Meanwhile, rail capacity through the city is at choke point.

Toll roads do not make economic sense as people who do not use them benefit (for free) from reduced traffic on the surface roads.

The lack of a variable price is criminal. $5 for peak hour or 1AM does not make sense!

[Jonno]

Sorry What surface traffic reduction? 

http://bit.ly/1wx3Y2t

Why building more highways won't reduce congestion in the long term.

There's a lot of misinformation out there about induced demand, a widely established city planning model that attempts to explain why cities tend to maintain a steady state of congestion. I'll go into some more detail on the theory of induced demand later, but I wanted to start with the economic model.

Auto transportation market
The amount that people drive is determined by market forces of supply and demand. Consumer preferences about driving are provided by the demand function, which shows that drivers choose to drive less as the cost of driving increases. Conversely, the supply function is a representation of the existing stock of roadways. In this case, the cost of auto travel is congestion.

Model Assumptions
The principle assumption is that the primary variable cost of auto travel is the time it takes to get from point A to point B, which is reasonable since the fixed cost of owning a car far outweighs the cost of gas for a majority of consumers. (Consider a worker who makes $15 an hour full time. An increase in average commute times by 12 minutes per day decreases his income by $750 a year—the equivalent of a 2.5 percent pay cut.) Even so, the price of gas does factor into people's driving decisions, so we have to assume that the price of gas is constant. Furthermore, we assume that consumers' driving preferences are constant. (More on this assumption later.)

Mechanics
The most common justification cited for building a new roadway is to reduce congestion, which makes sense. Most localities will commission a traffic study, which frequently assume constant growth of drivers and therefore also congestion.

Induced demand shows a different story, however. According to our model, the increase in the stock of roadways shifts the supply curve out, which does, in fact, reduce congestion in the short term, but, not as much as it would were there not growth in the number of vehicle miles traveled. Since the cost of driving is reduced, drivers both make longer and more frequent trips in the short term. As we can see from our graph, the number of vehicle miles traveled increases from q1 to q2.

In the long term, the reduced congestion encourages the construction of less dense housing developments far from the city center. With the new roadway, commuters can live farther from their places of work and leisure at the same cost. Over time, these developments shift the demand curve out, reducing the gains against congestion and further increasing the number of vehicle miles traveled.

The effect on cities
The auto transportation market explains the intuition that building more freeways makes a city more car-dependent and encourages sprawl. In very many documented cases (which I will summarize on Friday), building a new roadway does not reduce congestion for very long. Cities that invest in auto infrastructure do not see improvement in congestion.

What traffic engineers assume
According to Jeff Speck in Walkable City (which I'm still reading), traffic engineers commonly assume that demand for roads will increase at a constant rate, year over year. With that assumption in place, you can see how they could come to the conclusion that a new freeway will improve congestion in the long term. The market movement without induced demand is illustrated below.



The conclusions reached are vastly different. Under these assumptions, after opening the freeway, there is no increase in vehicle miles traveled (which is not corroborated by real-world data.) The reduction of congestion is larger than the induced demand model predicts, and the only growth in demand is independent on roadway growth.

Caveats
The relative sizes of the movements along the curves will vary depending on the slope of the demand curve (which is dependent upon consumer preferences, which vary from place to place). We will examine the variation in the relative effects of induced demand later this week.

Public policy implications
Government-supported roads are effectively subsidies for motorists. Without as much investment in roads, the free market would have a greater incentive to create public transportation and dense housing options in city centers. For this reason, the enemy of the walkable city is the six-lane freeway. As I have argued before (and will no doubt argue again), walkability serves several public policy goals at once.

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Detour trucks around Mater Hospital to save lives: scientist

[Jonno]

Or build separated bike lanes!!!! Reduce accidents/injuries by 90%!!! whilst increasing bike usage by up to 100% for women and children!

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> T3 lanes abandoned on city bottleneck Kelvin Grove Road

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> Tunnel to nowhere: Why Brisbane motorists avoid the Clem7

[Jonno]

Couriermail --> Tunnel to nowhere: Why Brisbane motorists avoid the Clem7

As I have highlighted all along We now have a corporation(s) whose SMS focus is to increase car use which directly contradicts ever SEQ planning strategy!  Fail!

[pandmaster]

Couriermail --> Tunnel to nowhere: Why Brisbane motorists avoid the Clem7

I am not going to start a debate over whether tolls should be on roads and if so which roads they should be on. IMHO the toll price is reasonable for peak hour.  What I object to is paying the same amount to use it at 3AM on a Tuesday morning at 5PM on a Tuesday afternoon. A variable toll reflecting supply and demand would be much better.

If people do not know where the tunnel will take them it is probably because they can or do not want to pay the toll so they never consider using it.

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> East Brisbane homes resumed in Lytton Road upgrade

[#Metro]

Oh lookie there, SO MUCH TRAFFIC, NO BULIMBA GLIDER.

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> East Brisbane homes resumed in Lytton Road upgrade

... Lytton Road's lanes will be widened – from 2.8 metres to 3.3 metres – and the troublesome intersection at Heidelberg Street – where there has been 50 "significant" accidents improved.

"A number of these have been head-on collisions," Cr Schrinner said.

"So that is something on the upside."

Bus stops along the section of the road will be "indented" into the new six lane road to improve the traffic flow and there are plans to remove some of the bus stops.

Cr Schrinner said council expected some local residents to be upset.

"I expect the wider community will be supportive of the plans," he said.

"However I am sure there will be some local objections, and I am sure this project will be no different.

"But, as I've said, in the end, there is no doubt that this project needs to happen ..."

Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/east-brisbane-homes-resumed-in-lytton-road-upgrade-20141002-10pin6.html

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Heritage bridge may cause Lytton Road bottleneck

[James]

Brisbanetimes --> Heritage bridge may cause Lytton Road bottleneck

Typical. A big issue with our road network is while we go off and widen everything, we don't focus on removing the bottlenecks, and hence any road 'upgrades' just move choke points.

The Oxley Rd corridor from Indooroopilly to Corinda is a great example. All nice and dandy to upgrade Oxley Rd between the Tennyson Line and the Walter Taylor Bridge to 2 lanes each way, but such work has little use when there's still only one lane each way when passing under the Tennyson line/crossing the Brisbane River. Same thing here. If a second bridge isn't built and more lanes added east of the Canning Bridge, any other road widening is of limited benefit.

[pandmaster]

Sorry What surface traffic reduction?

Anecdotally where I live the surface traffic is pretty good along the route the tunnel covers. You make a good point about induced demand, particularly in the Brisbane context where PT is so expensive. My point was more to do with the free rider problem (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_rider_problem), although in some cases the benefit of the toll road is cancelled out by induced demand on existing roads.

[pandmaster]

Oh lookie there, SO MUCH TRAFFIC, NO BULIMBA GLIDER.

The council is spending a fortune on road upgrades in an area very conducive to PT, with the Cleveland Line, Busway, river transport and Fortitude Valley buses and rail close by. That money could pay for the Bulimba Glider for some time I imagine.

A lot of the vehicles come from points along the Cleveland Line too, so perhaps the road is not the issue, but PT access, frequency and fares? I wonder how much congestion this will actually prevent when built, especially with the bridge choke point as pointed out.

Resuming properties for CRR/BaT, a project benefiting the entire rail network and SEQ is out of the question but resuming properties for a road benefiting only part of Brisbane goes ahead. I know they are different tiers of government but on principle I think resuming for the rail tunnel is more worthwhile.

[ozbob]

^ indeed.  It shows how shallow BaT actually is ... in concept and process.

[ozbob]

[ozbob]

http://statements.qld.gov.au/Statement/2014/10/9/new-projects-will-keep-warrego-highway-moving

Minister for Transport and Main Roads
The Honourable Scott Emerson
Thursday, October 09, 2014

New projects will keep Warrego Highway moving

THE first road works funded under the $635 million Warrego Highway Upgrade Package have been approved, with $110 million to be spent on the first stage of an upgrade for the Toowoomba to Oakey section.

Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Warren Truss said the project would duplicate 5.7 kilometres of the Warrego Highway, providing two lanes in each direction between Charlton and Cotswold Hills, to the west of Toowoomba.

"We are prioritising construction of this section of the Warrego Highway because it will intersect with the future Toowoomba Second Range Crossing," Mr Truss said.

"The Warrego Highway connects the agricultural and resource regions west of Toowoomba to the Port of Brisbane, so the economic potential of these upgrades is enormous.

"In fact, every dollar spent on this project will return to the economy more than five times the cost of our investment.

"We know that our regions are the backbone of our economy, which is why the Australian Government is prioritising the infrastructure that our regions need to prosper."

Queensland Minister for Transport and Main Roads Scott Emerson said that beyond the significant economic benefits, the project was part of a strong plan to deliver safety improvements for drivers on the Warrego Highway.

"The duplication will separate eastbound and westbound traffic, markedly reducing the chance of head-on collisions and allow a better transport flow of goods and services," Mr Emerson said.

"Truck drivers, farmers and commuters will all look forward to construction on the project starting early next year, with completion due at the end of 2016."

The Australian Government has committed up to $88 million to the project, with the Queensland Government providing $22 million

[#Metro]

Building a new fast road always improves traffic flow, right?

Perhaps not -- watch here!!

Dr. Chris Bishop explains an interesting paradox that shows how the removal of very fast roads can actually reduce average journey times if all drivers act selfishly.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braess's_paradox

[ozbob]

Couriermail Quest --> Southside motorists complain traffic lights outside Westfield Garden City cause vehicles to back-up for 2km

[ozbob]

Twitter

Mikael ‏@copenhagenize

The original "how many people take up street space" graphic. From 1924