SEQ Bus Network Review

[Fares_Fair]

Buses halted around Queen Street Mall.
Gunman on the loose.
Mall evacuated.

Robbery gone wrong, man in shorts and no shirt seen waving gun and shouting.

Police have suspect cornered, he's threatening self-harm.
Police retreating with guns drawn.
SERT officers moving in.

[somebody]

Hey so what is happening with the P344...No mention of it at all?

The Pnnn routes are at the end.

[HappyTrainGuy]

Some get the .50 cal and load a couple bean bag rounds 

Could be a good test run with the KGSBS Super Stop! 

[nathandavid88]

Just to clear up the issue of the span of the Go Network routes, here are the proposed spans according to the review:

#1 City Glider: 5am–11pm
#2 Maroon Glider: 5am–11pm
#3 Uni Glider (66/109): 5am–11pm
#4 New Farm – Yeronga (196): 5am–11pm
#5 West End – Teneriffe (199): 5am–11pm

#6 The Gap – City via Ashgrove (385): 5:30am–10pm
#7 Mitchelton – City via Ashgrove (352): 6am–9pm
#8 Albany Creek – Mitchelton (350): 6am–9pm

#9 Aspley – City via Newmarket (345): 5:30am–10pm
#10 Taigum – City via Webster Road (325/335): 6am–9pm
#11 Bracken Ridge – City via Chermside (330/333): 5am–11pm
#12 Chermside – City via Toombul & Hamilton: 6am–9pm

#13 Morningside–City via Woolloongabba (227/232):  6am–9pm
#14 Carindale – UQ (203): 6am–9pm
#15 Carindale – City via Eastern Busway (200/222): 5am–11pm

#16 Garden City – City via Cavendish Road (180): 6am–9pm
#17 Garden City – City via Logan Road (180): 5:30am–10pm
#18 Browns Plains – City via Mains Road (140): 5am–11pm
#19 Browns Plains – City via Garden City (150): 5am–11pm
#20 Loganholme – City (111/555): 5am–11pm
#21 Algester – City via Mains Road (130): 5am–11pm
#22 Garden City – City via Mansfield (180): 5:30am–10pm
#23 Garden City – City via Ipswich Road (120/125): 6am–9pm

#24 UQ (St Lucia) – City (412): 6am–9pm
#25 Forest Lake – Mt Ommaney (101/103/106/452): 5:30am–10pm
#26 Mt Ommaney – City (460): 5am–11pm

I personally don't need 15 minutes frequencies from Brisbane after, say, 8–9pm. The 555 style frequency of half hourly was perfectly acceptable for me, or they could split the difference and have 20min frequencies maybe, which might not be a bad move. I would expect the Blue and Maroon Gliders to remain at 15 mins frequencies right up to 11pm, and maybe the #5 (199) as well. Overall, we'll have to wait for the timetables I think.

[bagbuffy]

The Buses on the Go Network are they Express services, City Bus services or a Combination of both?

[Mr X]

I like S99, an inner loop bus is a great idea

What about taking their proposed Inner Loop (S99) and running it via Gloucester and Dornoch instead of Vulture? http://translink.com.au/resources/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review/Route-475.png

IMO Vulture St is already fairly well covered by the 196 and the proximity of the 199 and the busway stations/train station.

Re: Gloucester St: not the best for buses I'm afraid. If this is a two way loop then going Eastbound will be fine but Westbound won't, on Gloucester St theres a large dip before the Gladstone Rd intersection which is probably unsuitable for buses, and you can only turn left onto Gladstone Rd and not straight ahead onto Dornoch Tce.

Westbound you could turn down Weat St/Louisa or Mabel, then onto Gertrude St and right onto Gladstone Rd and left onto Dornoch but I'm pretty sure the local residents will be cranky at that idea, and as it is Gertrude St is signposted as local access only.

[Jonas Jade]

The Buses on the Go Network are they Express services, City Bus services or a Combination of both?

Hopefully they'll be getting rid of this distinction, and just going with well spaced stop locations.

[Golliwog]

I'm having issues finding what sort of CBD stop location variations exist for each corridor. I understand the need for the Superstops, and support that but I think each corridor either needs more than 1 super stop so they can cover more of the CBD (people don't like walking!) or invest in improving the loop and CBD distributor services. Routes 196, 199 and the City Glider are good for the Valley-CBD connection, but they need to ensure that there is a decent connection between RBWH busway and the Valley (If the Inner Loop S99 runs at a decent frequency this would probably do), and that Spring Hill has connections to both the CBD and to the busway/Musgrave Rd/Kelvin Grove Rd at Normanby.

To keep each corridor serving the same Super Stop, I don't think you can take a route from each corridor to serve that function, but you could take a whole corridor and divert it. So for the Spring Hill connection, you could have either the Musgrave Rd or Kelvin Grove Rd corridor run via College Rd and Upper Edward St. If interchange was made a simple affair then this would allow Spring Hill bound pax (from all 3 corridors) to get there without having to go via Roma St and the CBD then back either on foot or on the Spring Hill Loop.

[achiruel]

I'm wondering how all the Adelaide St routes from the southern suburbs that are no longer continuing into the valley are going to turn around?

[Mr X]

Aren't a fair few now going to Roma St instead?

[somebody]

The Buses on the Go Network are they Express services, City Bus services or a Combination of both?

Hopefully they'll be getting rid of this distinction, and just going with well spaced stop locations.

I disagree with this.  I'd hate to sit on a 330 to Bracken Ridge which has a stop every 600m.

I'm having issues finding what sort of CBD stop location variations exist for each corridor. I understand the need for the Superstops, and support that but I think each corridor either needs more than 1 super stop so they can cover more of the CBD (people don't like walking!) or invest in improving the loop and CBD distributor services. Routes 196, 199 and the City Glider are good for the Valley-CBD connection, but they need to ensure that there is a decent connection between RBWH busway and the Valley (If the Inner Loop S99 runs at a decent frequency this would probably do), and that Spring Hill has connections to both the CBD and to the busway/Musgrave Rd/Kelvin Grove Rd at Normanby.

To keep each corridor serving the same Super Stop, I don't think you can take a route from each corridor to serve that function, but you could take a whole corridor and divert it. So for the Spring Hill connection, you could have either the Musgrave Rd or Kelvin Grove Rd corridor run via College Rd and Upper Edward St. If interchange was made a simple affair then this would allow Spring Hill bound pax (from all 3 corridors) to get there without having to go via Roma St and the CBD then back either on foot or on the Spring Hill Loop.

Having more than one super stop per corridor completely defeats the point (unless you mean multiple stops on Ann St, which all the routes on that corridor serve, for example)!

[Gazza]

I know I keep banging this drum Simon, but post 2016 when zillmere has 4tph due to Kippa Ring, I doubt many will be doing the whole run from Bracken Ridge to city on the 330.
As it is, the train is 10 mins faster in the crucial peak period, from Zillmere, and the wait time for the train is max 6 minutes, so the transfer penalty is miniscule.

I imagine something along the lines of the Forest Lake Mt Ommaney #25 high frequency route could be done on the northside...

Just replace Mt Ommaney with Chermside, Forest Lake with Bracken Ridge, and Darra with Zillmere...Exactly the same conceptually.

[Golliwog]

Simon, what I meant by multiple super stops per corridor was that you'd have all the routes in that corridor serve both super stops. My issue with having just one is that that 1 super stop is great for those that are near that stop, but less useful for those who don't work near KGS or Adelaide St, or wherever your corridors super stop ends up. Are those who work in the Eagle St or Parliament precincts just meant to walk now?

[HappyTrainGuy]

I disagree with this.  I'd hate to sit on a 330 to Bracken Ridge which has a stop every 600m.

Harden up I say. People in Bracken Ridge shouldn't even have a direct city express service. Get the train (at which point would be 4tph and if we're very lucky would have an express portion) and jump onto a Strathpine-Sandgate bus, the Strathpine-Chermside via Bracken Ridge bus, interchange at Zillmere or accept the fact that your bus is now going to have a whoopping extra 5 stops. It's not the end of the world. The sky won't fall. Who knows, if they finally get around to building Norris Road into Carseldine station a Bracken Ridge South feeder might make an appearence.

[somebody]

I know I keep banging this drum Simon, but post 2016 when zillmere has 4tph due to Kippa Ring, I doubt many will be doing the whole run from Bracken Ridge to city on the 330.
As it is, the train is 10 mins faster in the crucial peak period, from Zillmere, and the wait time for the train is max 6 minutes, so the transfer penalty is miniscule.

Umm, are you talking about peak or off peak?  Be interesting to see stats on how many people are interchanging at Zillmere to/from the 330.  Times I've used the 330 off peak it's been a round number of people interchanging.  Perhaps in peak hour you may get some although I don't expect a large number.  The journey planner ignores the interchange option, unless you are going to Fortitude Valley where it makes a negligible difference to one's journey time to use the train even in peak hour.

It's only a disadvantage to transfer at Zillmere for most people.  Stop pretending that it ain't so.  It's very tedious.

I disagree with this.  I'd hate to sit on a 330 to Bracken Ridge which has a stop every 600m.

Harden up I say. People in Bracken Ridge shouldn't even have a direct city express service. Get the train (at which point would be 4tph and if we're very lucky would have an express portion) and jump onto a Strathpine-Sandgate bus, the Strathpine-Chermside via Bracken Ridge bus, interchange at Zillmere or accept the fact that your bus is now going to have a whoopping extra 5 stops. It's not the end of the world. The sky won't fall. Who knows, if they finally get around to building Norris Road into Carseldine station a Bracken Ridge South feeder might make an appearence.

Exactly what you say to suggestions that there should be 4tph on the Caboolture line.  I am completely sure these changes will be implemented with a lousy 2tph Caboolture line off peak service from Virginia out.

[HappyTrainGuy]

Go check out some of the work being done to the Kippa Ring line. If NGR gets up and running I honestly would not be suprised to see 4tph Kippa Ring-Springfield and 2tph Caboolture-Ipswich express.

Currently yes because of the poor feeder network. Just try venturing somewhere that's not on your beloved buz network. Beyond Northgate alot of the patronage is from cars using the park and rides. Jack all services get you to Chermside to access a bus. Jack all services get you from Chermside to the railway line let alone to areas surrounding the interchanges at Aspley/Geebung/Chermside (the fastest route from Geebung-Aspley is still the 336/337 that detours almost into Carseldine). The only proper and dedicated local network feeder is run from 8.30am-4pm on a 2 hour frequency (336/337) despite it feeding into 2 bus interchanges, 1 railway station, 7-8 schools, 2 RSLs, 4 shopping complexes, a old folks home and areas directly surrounding the interchanges that currently don't have access to any bus routes. If no one uses it why expect express and frequency increases asap for off peak. People in Zillmere catch the 330 because it stops closer to their house without doing the trek up and down the stairs or get caught in the wait to tag off. The only reason the 330 got its patronage was because of how s**t the bus network was and still currently is. There are some big wins for the northside with the new routes and still areas for improvment with future development/new road modifications. The Caboolture line is like the 330. As it turns to night the 330 fails as a 15 min service as it just carriers air express to Chermside where all the shops had closed a few hours before. It has great patronage during peak hour but outside it starts to get really quiet as the direction of flow changes until it hits Northgate. Watch how many people actually tag on and off. Then there is the issue with Petrie blocking the track all the way back to sometimes Geebung as they wait for their slot as an inbound service/not to block level crossings. Strathpine-Petrie pretty much every bus route is hourly. All day. Peak hour is hourly with the exception of the 680. Morning peak hour there's a train every 7 minutes but there's only a bus every 60 minutes depending on where you live. After 6pm you are pretty much only driving to and from the station. Walking isn't always a possability due to the very poor lighting surrounding the stations or just the sheer distance that has to be covered. With all the patronage Narangba and Burpengary bring in the feeder network dies at 6-7pm. Sunshine has a good frequency of dead running buses going to the depot. Geebung has a crappy feeder network and not to mention the conflit of busses arriving at the same time as the trains do (Geebung has both inbound and outbound trains arriving at the same time so you are guaranteed no one will make any interchange either from bus to train or train to bus. The interchange facilities also suck for the 325 as you have to walk futher to interchange than at Zillmere). Zillmere is a hole of a place at night and to interchange. 326, 327 all gone before 7pm. Carseldine has the 340 but what about the other side? 335 dies at 7pm or something with services going Sandgate way till 10ish. Bald Hills suffers from buses terminating at Bracken Ridge then dead running along the same route it would normally take to Strathpine. Dakabin is taking up the slack of overflow from Petrie. At particular times it might warrant a 15 min service in a particular direction but on a whole nope. A better network is coming but we just have to wait for it.

[Gazza]

Umm, are you talking about peak or off peak?

Well obviously off peak...Did you know the line is 2tph at present?
There wont be 4tph offpeak till 2016 most likely, unless they decide to increase frequency out of the goodness of their heart. Don't be obtuse.

Times I've used the 330 off peak it's been a round number of people interchanging.

I woundn't expect otherwhise. It would suck to get off the bus and find the train is 25 mins away. So why risk it.

It's only a disadvantage to transfer at Zillmere for most people.  Stop pretending that it ain't so.  It's very tedious.

That's a bit like saying its a disadvantage for 460 users to change at Richlands rather than stay on.

If the rail and feeder was better, people would do it.

[#Metro]

My thoughts - Feedback

1. Excellent work TransLink, this is fantastic.
2. See #1
3. See #2

1. Go Network - needs to be mode indifferent. Trains should be included in the branding, as should the ferry and eventually trams.

2. Go Network - great concept but you need the F word in it. What is the F word? Frequency. Go Frequent Network I would suggest. Adelaide already has the GO Zones so there needs to be at least a little distinction from that.

3. Loops. If loops have to be used, I would suggest treating them as two single routes for marketing purposes, as Jarrett Walker suggests for simplicity. This could be reflected in the numbering for instance - 12A and 12 B or something like this.

4. Bulimba - This still doesn't have CFN standard service down Oxford street. The ferry is not adequate because it takes 48 minutes approx (have to include waiting time etc) to get to the CBD. For a suburb so geographically close, this should be fixed.

5. Night span and frequency. Night services are about welfare and safety, not patronage. So patronage isn't so relevant when talking about late night services. As a person who is car-free, I can tell you that while people may not use late night services, they do value the option of using a late night service. Many times I have had to catch a taxi in some parts of Brisbane late at night - this can easily be $25 to $40 per trip. This is particularly true for places like universities were staff and students stay back and hospitals. As you can imagine, if these taxi bills keep mounting up, say even once a week, that's 52 x $25 = $1300 per year, a significant financial impost on that person and a powerful incentive to get a car, and use it ALL DAY. When a passenger considers making a trip, they consider supply because the greatest cost of making that trip is the time spent waiting, not the ticket cost.

9pm or 10 pm should be where 15 minute frequency goes to, then transition down to 20 minutes and then half hourly.

6. There needs to be later services like trains at least on the Go Network. The last services should depart the CBD at around midnight or thereabouts. Again this is about welfare and safety not patronage. There may be scope to run selected services 24/7 such as the 555 replacement route down the busway and the 333 replacement route to Bracken Ridge, even if only hourly.

7. Interchange stops should be created, or at least made distinguished from boring normal stops. Perhaps the 'superstops' idea or branding could be taken to the suburbs, for example, you could have a superstop at indooroopilly train station; Just calling it a superstop screams to people 'You can do interchange here!'

8. Uni Glider - should get bus wrap and sell the advertising/sponsorship rights to UQ or QUT to get a UQ Glider. Spend the money generated on a new large bicycle terminus at UQ Lakes

9. You need a Frequent Network map, up at all train, busway stations etc

10. A review like this should be a legislative requirement to be done every 10 years and presented to parliament by the CEO of TransLink. The amount of waste and inefficiency revealed by the review is of a truly shocking and phenomenal magnitude, particularly within the Brisbane Transport/BCC area. Waste like this must never ever be allowed to accumulate to the proportions that it did ever again.

11. Although outside of the scope of the review, a bridge from Moggil to Riverhills would allow that area to have direct rail and CBD access.

12. Together with the roll out of this network, ALL PAPER TICKETING MUST BE ABOLISHED, starting with the Go Frequent Network (GFN) buses. Melbourne has done this. With all the amount of interchanging going on, and higher loads on these GFN buses there just isn't the time for everyone to be buying paper tickets. The bus is going to be LOADED all day every day, so there is no room for delays. Likewise, all door boarding must be instituted, again for time purposes. These interchanges are going to be very busy with large volumes of people changing, it is not practical to have 60+ people line up at the front door. Not.Going.To.Happen.

13. This is a truly historic reform, groundbreaking, it's going to leave the bus networks in Sydney and Melbourne for dead.

14. Excellent that the Great Circle Line is being broken up and steam ironed, but the frequency on that really should be better than 30 minutes, and probably included in the GFN. 20 minutes would be acceptable, but I tend to think 15 minutes 7am-7pm. Something to think about.

15. Excellent work for Centenary and the Northwest. Both these areas get a BUZ and they managed to cover the Centenary suburbs in just TWO bus services, which is better than even our proposals!!

16. Bus stop spacing needs to be rationalised. Many stops are too close together, for local stops this is not so much of an issue, but for GFN services, it can be - for example the 196...

Perhaps I will have more thoughts later, but if I do I will add. I have to say I am certain that deep in the basement of City Hall there is a lot of swearing going on about connections, running to rail, 'foreigners' being able to ride the bus direct from Logan rather than 111 and P88 to keep them out etc.

[ozbob]

My thoughts - Feedback

[Set in train]

Checking my inbox, I found this:

Date:    Fri, 8 Mar 2013 16:23:51 +1000
From:    "moorooka.ward@ecn.net.au" <moorooka.ward@ecn.net.au>
To:    "moorooka.ward@ecn.net.au" <moorooka.ward@ecn.net.au>
Subject:    Bus Review a Disaster for Residents in Southern Suburbs
Part(s):    
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   1.2   unnamed   text/html   12.69 KB   

Good afternoon residents,

I condemn the changes by the Newman State Government to bus routes in the Moorooka Ward.

I would encourage you to view the SEQ Bus Network Review at http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review?utm_source=translink&utm_medium=primary-tile&utm_content=march-2013&utm_campaign=seq-bus-network-review

People who use public transport are going to be impacted by these severe cuts.  The Ward office is already being inundated by angry commuters.

This review will affect the disadvantaged, the elderly and public transport dependent people.  It shows the Newman Government is more interested in profits than people and is out of touch with residents' needs.

Some examples include:

Bus route 100 has been cut.  This route, popular with commuters accessing the PA Hospital provides a link along Ipswich Road to the City.  This service has been axed despite TransLink acknowledging a very high patronage of this route.

Bus route 110, which provides a direct service to the City for residents in Acacia Ridge, Rocklea and Moorooka, has been cut.  Residents from Acacia Ridge and Archerfield now have no direct bus service to or from the City.

Routes 112, 113 and 114, which serviced Tarragindi and Annerley, Griffith University and Garden City has been cut.

Route 116 which serviced Tarragindi, Rocklea, Moorooka and Annerley will be cut.

Despite very high patronage the 117 route has been cut.  This will impact residents in Acacia Ridge, Archerfield and Moorooka.

Route 122, servicing Coopers Plains has also been cut.

Route 124 has been cut despite TransLink identifying it as having high value for money.  This route travelled from City to Garden City via Ipswich Road.

Residents of Salisbury will also been severely affected by these changes.  For example, elderly residents will be unable to utilise the 124 service as the changes make it impossible to access a bus stop.  For many elderly residents the 124 was a vital connection to the PA Hospital and services in the City.

In another instance the 120 service, which is noted by TransLink as having "very high patronage" has had its frequency cut.

Prior to this, residents had contacted the Ward Office concerning the infrequency of this service and the fact that it often left commuters stranded because the service was full.

It beggars belief that the Newman Government would now reduce the frequency of the 120 service.

The Newman Government has shown a complete contempt for public transport commuters.

I am still awaiting advice as to the consultation process but I encourage residents to contact their State Members to voice their concerns.

Regards

Steve Griffiths

Councillor for Moorooka Ward



If you do not wish to receive regular updates please advise by return email and you will be removed from the database.

       

According to a comment on the GCB site, a speedier councillor/MP had already letterbox dropped similar information to a Gold Coast community. Unfortunately, they have never replied to Surfrail's question of which route.

[Gazza]

^Oooh, I'm going to copy paste that and send a big rebuttal 

[#Metro]

It is very clear that the ALP and BCC are going to block frequency and decent service expansion. Profits before people, nonsense!

TrasnLink had better get onto this pronto, I fully expect a certain councillor in Tennyson to do something similar. This is actually why so much waste accumulated in the BCC area under the watch of the BCC - local council wards are so small that no councillor or council dare make the required changes to the network, hence the waste, buses direct to the CBD, the 15% annual increasing fares, some of the highest fares in the world, highest subsidies in the world, worst frequency etc.

The current system is unsustainable financially and operationally. BCC was warned by their own Lord Mayor's Mass Transit Report in 2007 that adding more and more buses to the system and doing nothing was going to cause system meltdown and overload.

[kazzac]

I agree,scrap paper tickets, if Melbourne can do it so can Brisbane

[#Metro]

TransLink needs to roll out the frequency on the best foot - pick the routes that are likely to best succeed first and roll those out first.

[newbris]

Many positive moves in this.  Your input has been valuable, well done all.

I would like to second this. Well done Bob and all your regular contributors. As more of a reader than contributor it seems to me from reading the report that all of your regular posters' ideas and lobbying has made a difference...many of the changes in the report are just fantastic and will make a big difference. After reading that I feel compelled to say well done everyone and thank you.

[ozbob]

 

[Golliwog]

I think half the problem that the BCC Councillor is talking about is in part BCC not wanting their routes cut and played with. But I think the other half is that the information on what the new routes are, where they go and how they work isn't that easy to access. It's easy to look through the list of existing routes and find the ones that are being cut and having parts out their route covered by different new routes, but there's no easy way of saying: well ok, this new route, can I pull up a full route map for it and see where it goes and how it interacts with the Go Network and the railway lines, etc?

I think Translink needs to work with Councillors and local MP's to some extent and provide them with a lot of information about the changes so when residents come in to complain, the Councillor or MP can provide them with all the information about the new routes.

[#Metro]

You'd be surprised how many councillors oppose something just so they can build profile ID...

It's an ALP councillor and not only that used the same lines as Jackie Trad did in the soundbite this afternoon... co-ordinated campaign... but I think once everyone gets over their loss aversion mode, they'll actually appreciate the new decent frequency etc.

Would love to see Gazza's response.

[Gazza]

Dear Cr Griffiths,

I was forwarded your email about bus route changes in the Moorooka Ward.
I'm currently a Master of Architecture student, so I'm both a heavy user of public transport, and I have an interest in it due to the way it can shape our cities. For a while I've been involved in Bob Dows' commuter advocacy group, RAIL Back on Track, and have a strong interest in improving public transport.

I'm not politically affiliated or anything like that, I just reckon good public transport can really enhance the life of a city.
So with that in mind, I've been looking through in detail at all the changes proposed across SEQ, and for the most part, it's pretty solid and will be a net improvement to the current network. I don't feel the need to condemn much at all. Change is nothing to be afraid of.

It saddens me a bit that the debate at present is being reduced to the level of "OMG they cut my bus route", when people need to calm down and see that new routes are taking their place. It's a shame because I don't think anyone can deny the need to radically overhaul the bus network  to increase usage.

So with that in mind, here is my rebuttal to the issues raised in your email.


Good afternoon residents,

I condemn the changes by the Newman State Government to bus routes in the Moorooka Ward.

I would encourage you to view the SEQ Bus Network Review at http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review?utm_source=translink&utm_medium=primary-tile&utm_content=march-2013&utm_campaign=seq-bus-network-review

People who use public transport are going to be impacted by these severe cuts.  The Ward office is already being inundated by angry commuters.

This review will affect the disadvantaged, the elderly and public transport dependent people.  It shows the Newman Government is more interested in profits than people and is out of touch with residents' needs.

Firstly, public transport is provided for two reasons.
-To provide a service for those who cannot drive, because they may be disabled, on low income, too young to drive etc etc, and provide a link to essential services like shops, doctors, education etc.

-To provide a mass transit service that gets people out of their cars for their normal life activites, allows people to escape traffic congestion, helps reduce pollution, and allows dense urban development that would never work if we had to provide acres of car parking. Functioning mass transit is vital to general economic activity.

Both roles are important! On one side we care about the needs of the disadvantaged, but at the same time we care about the congestion and pollution in our city and need to protect future generations, and we want SEQ to be globally competitive.

The fundamental problem is that it's difficult for a bus route to do both things at once in some urban contexts. You might divert a bus down the back streets so it gets close to homes, but as a result the route is often slow, and for people who want to go somewhere in a hurry it will never be attractive, so the bus normally only has a couple of people on board.

On the other hand, you might provide a bus like the 222, which runs direct down a main road, with stops a good 800m apart. It's very quick and is a good alternative to driving, but the flipside is you have to walk further to get to the main road and the wider spaced stops, which some people physically cant do. These routes draw so many people you can run them at high frequency (15 mins) 7 days a week, right till 11pm.

Like it or not though, the most well patronised, by a mile in SEQ, according to the findings of the review are the latter type, the quick direct routes down main roads. People really flock to a high quality public transport system  that lets you leave the car at home.

The issue is that a lot of the routes which are being changed/cut are neither fish nor fowl. They don't do either function very well...They don't connect well for social access functions, but they are also poorly designed for a mass transit function so what they have done is gone through and draw the network from what is basically a clean slate, which hasn't been done in a long time.

Over time, there's a tendency to add new bus routes to fulfil a particular function or imperative, but at the same time, we have a tendency to not remove the old useless superseded routes (because some people complain so politically we shy away from doing so), so you end up with a very messy inefficient network.

And now, we ARE going through a process of overhauling it, and of course, people are going to complain because it means change.

Some routes are staying the same, but that's because they were good in the first place, and made sense, so they'll continue to play a role in the new network....The 199 is Brisbanes most sucessful bus route, so thats why it is very much living on and wont be touched.

But other routes seem to be the way they are "because thats the way they've always been".
And thats why they are on the chopping block, with others routes taking their place. And rightfully so, in my opinion!

Am I supposed to feel that a bus route is something that is untouchable till the end of time? Of course not!

I think the onus of proof is on the people to say why the new routes designed wouldn't work, because from my picking through of the review, some of the cuts and replacements are exactly what I would have done if I were in charge of network planing.


Some examples include:

Bus route 100 has been cut.  This route, popular with commuters accessing the PA Hospital provides a link along Ipswich Road to the City.  This service has been axed despite TransLink acknowledging a very high patronage of this route.

No it hasn't, it currently is coded as the S502, which is an identical route anyway, except it will Terminate at the planned Adelaide St superstop rather than Queen St bus station.

Some of the patronage of the 100 will be "taken away" because bus routes at the Forest Lake end are being rearranged to feed into Richlands and Oxley station. Thus the role of the 100 in the network will change forever. Less people will need to use it, so the frequency is cut back and reallocated to the substitute routes.
The Frequent #25 bus proposed, from Forest Lake to Oxley will give people less incentive to crowd the 100, since you'll be able to get into the city faster on the train by interchanging, rather than on congested Ipswich Rd.

However, for people on Ipswich Rd trying to get to the PA and the CBD, the Frequent #23 is replacing the 100 On Ipswich Road, so people along that coridoor are not put out.

Bus route 110, which provides a direct service to the City for residents in Acacia Ridge, Rocklea and Moorooka, has been cut.  Residents from Acacia Ridge and Archerfield now have no direct bus service to or from the City.
It wont go all the way to the CBD, However, instead it will swing right past Coopers Plains station, where people can interchange onto rail services to reach the CBD, and take advantage of Gold Coast express trains which call there. Whilst the journey to the city wont be on the one bus, it would be quicker due to the ability to interchange onto the rail network and avoid traffic gridlock on Ipswich rd.
In European and Canadian public transport systems it is very common for a suburban bus routes to funnel into the rail network, where high capacity trains get people to the city quickly.
But we don't do that Brisbane very well, and I for one am happy Brisbane is finally starting to do this properly, as part of this review.


Routes 112, 113 and 114, which serviced Tarragindi and Annerley, Griffith University and Garden City has been cut.

But in their place are new routes which are better. Ever seen the route map of the 113?...It looks like it was designed by a 3 year old.
However the proposed S404 and S405 are more direct, but are spaced apart in the Tarragindi area such that the walking distances to routes have not changed, so the accessibility isn't diminished.

Similarly, the 114 simply isn't needed in the new network plan because other routes have superceded it.

This is a prime example where the onus is on the protesters to say why the new route designs wouldn't work. Because in my eyes, they will.

Route 116 which serviced Tarragindi, Rocklea, Moorooka and Annerley will be cut.
The current 116 has a very slow and indirect routing because it zig zags east and west, which is a major disincentive to people using it instead of driving. It takes a whopping 48 minutes to reach the CBD, despite being less than 10km away from the CBD.
However in the same pedestrian catchment area the S406 and S502 will fulfil the same north south function, sans all that silly zigzagging.

Despite very high patronage the 117 route has been cut.  This will impact residents in Acacia Ridge, Archerfield and Moorooka.

This is being replaced by 2 routes! the S407 and the S410. In particular, the S410 is a big improvement over the 117 because it runs in a nice straight line through the heart of the suburb and onto Coopers Plains, and then onto Garden City. This means the S410 can be used to get to the city via Coopers Plains station, but it also is much easer to access the shops at Garden City than previously.
The S407 is more Zigzaggy, like the 117, so it fulfils the social access function, but again, the bus will call at Coopers Plains station, which is fully ADA compliant, so thats how they can access the CBD.

Route 122, servicing Coopers Plains has also been cut.
The 122 is being replaced by the S410, which runs basically the same route through Acacia Ridge and Coopers Plains, except the onwards connection to Garden City is via McCullogh St and Padstow Rd through the middle of Sunnybank, because the new frequent #23 will be taking over the old section of the 122 which ran along Riawena Rd. The other good thing is instead of finishing up at Inala, it keeps going through to Richlands train station.

Route 124 has been cut despite TransLink identifying it as having high value for money.  This route travelled from City to Garden City via Ipswich Road.
The 124 isn't needed any more because the S406 and the Frequent #23 are taking over the southern and northen parts of the route respectivley, and the "tail" of the route along McCullogh st gets covered by afformentioned S410.

Residents of Salisbury will also been severely affected by these changes.  For example, elderly residents will be unable to utilise the 124 service as the changes make it impossible to access a bus stop.  For many elderly residents the 124 was a vital connection to the PA Hospital and services in the City.
Depending on which part of the old route you live on, you'd use one of the 3 afformentioned replacement routes to access the PA hospital and the CBD. They all shadow the 124, and will presumably stop at the same bus stop poles as before.

In another instance the 120 service, which is noted by TransLink as having "very high patronage" has had its frequency cut.
In this case, I agree. What should be done is the S405 should be maintained at high frequency 7 days a week, because users along Orange Grove Rd and Toohey Rd would be accustomed to the 4 bus per hour headway.

Prior to this, residents had contacted the Ward Office concerning the infrequency of this service and the fact that it often left commuters stranded because the service was full.

It beggars belief that the Newman Government would now reduce the frequency of the 120 service.

The Newman Government has shown a complete contempt for public transport commuters.

But its not all totally like that. In my case the new network plan will give me a frequent bus to my local train station for the first time, which means I can finally give up on having to drive to the station. That's a big win, and something I have written several letters to MPs, translink etc about.

I am still awaiting advice as to the consultation process but I encourage residents to contact their State Members to voice their concerns.
On the contrary, many of the changes  are things I personally have written to my MP about (As far back as the previous government!),  and to Translink etc because I have an interest in the public transport system being easier to use and simpler to understand, whilst giving more people access to a better service.
I am currently in the process of writing a full submission on all proposed changes for the city (Currently up to route 200, and have written close to 11 pages so far! Whew!)

Many suggestions by those interested in public transport / bus enthusiasts have actually finally been taken onboard by Translink, and have shown up in this reviews recommendations, which goes to show that our campaigning has paid off! It's very easy for you guys to stand on the side lines and criticise, but there are several online communities where people have actually got together and started thinking about how their local bus routes could be redone.

In fact, Rail Back on Track have specifically called for a review of bus routes in the past, eg from Jan 2012 http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=7403.0

I urge you to actually look at the png files on the Translink website in detail, and see how services actually mesh together as a whole. In some cases yep they've cut an old crappy route, but in its place they've put in a much tidier one that will attract more passengers in the long run. Nobody likes a bus route that zigzags all over the countryside and takers forever to reach anywhere.

For those residents profoundly unable to access bus routes due to mobility issues, the real solution is to provide on demand paratransit right to their front door....Trying to navigate a 12m, 50 seat bus down backstreets is actually a really ineffective way of fulfilling our obligations to the vulnerable since you still cant get those buses everywhere.
I'd much rather see a decent Paratransit provided to them.

Cheers
Gavin Seipelt
Rail Back on Track
www.backontrack.org

[cartoonbirdhaus]

Removal of the evening services will probably see me buy a car, if I stay in Brisbane.  I think that says it all.

Although where I live (currently served by a high-frequency route) will have double the frequent service and enjoy another HF route in the other direction if the proposed changes apply, if I have to move from here, I'll probably look to Adelaide: already-sensible bus network design, lower rents, less crime and a comfortable climate! Anyway, it will be interesting to see what frequencies and operating hours will be applied to the secondary routes, especially on weekends. I hope there won't be too dramatic a drop-off once you venture off the Go network.

[ozbob]

Media release 9th March 2013



SEQ: Brisbane: Simplicity, Frequency, Reliability - Bus review

RAIL Back On Track (http://backontrack.org) a web based community support group for rail and public transport and an advocate for public transport passengers has highlighted recent media about bus network changes.

Robert Dow, Spokesman for RAIL Back On Track said:

"We have received material distributed by certain Brisbane City Councillors who are attempting to block changes that will allow decent, more frequent and reliable services and block the outer suburbs of Brisbane from receiving simple, frequent and reliable service to the Brisbane CBD."

"We believe the current bus network is unsustainable. It is operationally unsustainable because adding more and more buses to the system is causing huge congestion and delays in the city centre as a certain Brisbane journalist found out last week. It is financially unsustainable because we cannot keep paying ever increasing fares, amongst the world's highest, and also some of the world's highest taxpayer subsidies for services that leave some Brisbane Suburbs such as Bulimba, Centenary and the Northwest in the dark."

"Brisbane's failing bus network presently prioritises transporting air over transporting passengers."

"For example, under the network reforms, route 105 will be removed from Yeronga. This bus operates hourly. Under the Go Frequent Network, residents of Yeronga will, at minimum, be able to catch a bus every 15 minutes, from 7 am - 7pm, 7 days. Not only will students and pensioners benefit, but  everyone else will too. This will save 45 minutes on journeys to the CBD, simply through the reduction of waiting time. The residents of Centenary and Northwestern suburbs such as Albany Creek get Go Frequent Network services for the first time ever."

"We believe the Go Frequent Network, funded from recycling waste, duplication and inefficiency in the current bus network will give the city the simplicity, frequency and span of service that we need."

"We have heard the reforms referred to as 'profits before people'. Nonsense, as the public transport runs at 75% subsidy - there is no profit-  and the Brisbane network is one of the most subsidised systems in the world. Continuing the current failing network could well see the return of 15% fare rises or higher."

"The current bus system is anti-patronage and doesn't serve the needs of the city. We look forward to a simpler, frequent and more reliable network."

References:

1 San francisco: loss of empty buses mourned
http://www.humantransit.org/2009/12/san-francisco-loss-of-empty-buses-mourned-as-usual.html

2. "Transferring" can be good for you, and good for your city
http://www.humantransit.org/2010/05/basics-should-we-redesign-our-bus-network-and-how.html

3. San francisco: sometimes cuts are an improvement
http://www.humantransit.org/2009/11/san-francisco-cuts-for-effectiveness.html

Contact:

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

[SurfRail]

In practical terms, the Clowncil LNP won't go rocking the boat too much. 

Remember which party just suffered from 3 leadership spills/knifings/crises interstate in the past week?  Last thing they would want is to air spats with their State HQ publicly.

If any BCC councillor raises general negative rhetoric, we need to fight it with numbers and facts, and reasonable responses like Gazza's.  In particular, we need to emphasise how much BT costs to run and how much waste there is.

Gazza - I'm not as inclined to write my own "full" submission for this time around, because I'm generally too happy with most of it to be that worried and I likely won't have the time.  Are you doing every route in SEQ?  If so I wouldn't mind seeing it before you send it off and suggesting tweaks (eg if it's in Word I can put them in tracking for you).  Some others might be interested too, but I'm happy for you to have editorial control.

[#Metro]

Greenslopes Hospital runs a private shuttle between Greenslopes Busway Station and the Hospital every 15-20 minutes between 6:00am and 6:00pm which I think would be more useful to most people than the hourly 172 was anyway.

I actually believe that there is scope for a TransLink 'Trusted' service in this case. What TransLink would do is sign a contract for a peppercorn amount - say $1 - for x years with Greenslopes hospital guaranteeing the operation of service at specific times (or non-specific if need be) and meet TL disability standards etc in exchange for this private bus service to be featured inside the TL website and journey planner as if it were one of TL's own buses. Once signed up they could just get a large magnet or decal or something to stick to the minibus and run as if it were a TL service. There would be no need to install expensive ticketing equipment inside the bus as it's free.

I'm sure there are other sorts of services that run like this that could be incorporated under a 'Trusted service' brand. BCC's community taxi is one, and there might be other ones we have never heard of operating near hospitals, unis etc.

While this may seem like some effort, if TL had to run the service itself, or divert a service to the hospital, the cost would be easily 10x - 100x more...

[#Metro]

More thoughts

17. New Farm area - still seems to have that relic of 470. I think the blue secondary route S111 would be better simply travelling down James street and terminating at the Brisbane Powerhouse bus loop. Ferry connections can be made by walking through New Farm Park.

I understand the draw for the Tennerife ferry, but there are heaps of buses that go there already, and very frequently. New farm is a high load area, and James Street is an activated street with many shops, cinema, businesses, etc plus demand from the Brisbane powerhouse at night. It would make better sense to just send the bus straight down James Street, and this could be flagged in the future as something to upgrade to GFN standards (not at priority at the moment though, so much to do).

18. I hope that they keep some logic to the bus numbering system - 4x for west, 3x for north etc. If all the numbering gets jumbled then legibility will be reduced.

19. Not really sure about the removal of 411. Have to see the journey times for that. Would prefer termination at Toowong as the current 402 performs now. Sure people could go to Indro, but that's a backtrack IMHO.

20. Current 412 / #24 St Lucia to City should terminate at UQ if possible. It has been a longstanding issue for many years that people catch the bus intending to go to the CBD, but get the wrong one and terminates at Hawken Village! Terminating at UQ would remove this ambiguity and bring the service into line with public expectations. I suspect the only reason why it goes to Hawken village is layover space. The layover areas outside the IMB at UQ could be transformed into new bus stops, perhaps superstops, as could car parking near Research oad/Colleges plus there is space (currently just has trees) outside the IMB.

21. St Lucia local is a loop; consider marketing as two routes with subnumbers, with number changeover occurring at Indooroopilly for legibility purposes. i.e. S512A S512B.

22. Didn't quite understand what is going on with the 430 - route says to UQ but diagram shows blue line terminating at St Lucia Golf course. I'm sure this is a typo error. What is so special about St Lucia Golf course? So I think this is a display error, and the line was intended to go to UQ. http://translink.com.au/resources/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review/Route-430.png

23. A lot of buses run to UQ; As a interchange at indooroopilly rail is developed, possibly on the land that the barracks has there, there probably should be a lot of layover space provided there as I doubt that so many need to go all the way to UQ.

24. S104 Mt Cootha to CBD may need to divert into the botanical gardens. Analysis and site visit should be done to determine safety of pedestrians crossing here if the bus runs on the road outside. The reason why I flag this is because a lot of eldery people love botanical gardens etc and likely that there would be a greater need for DDA access at this location, safety crossing the road in a wheelchair etc.

25. S99 is a loop and thus should be marketed as two routes for legibility, with numbers changing over at Wooloongabba and another northside location, possibly using subnumbering S99A and S99B.

26. S305 (current 590) seems to be a map error here. Route currently does not travel via Murrarie station, grey line incorrect. New route should travel via rail station for rail connections to Cleveland line. Frequency should be better than 30 minutes - 20 minutes is acceptable, GFN upgrade in future desired. http://translink.com.au/resources/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review/Route-590.png

27. Very good work with S210 - cut out that time wasting diversion, line travels straight down metroad 5, excellent!!

[newbris]

As already noted the main change for my area in the inner north west is the Coopers Camp Rd/Latrobe Tce 385 has been moved to Waterworks/Musgrave Rd and become the F6 Gap to The City via Waterworks/Musgrave to use the bus peak priority lane. The 379, 380 and 381 have been cut/replaced. The maroon cityglider will now be responsible for the heavy lifting on Latrobe/Given/Caxton.

Some small things I have noticed from this:

* Coopers Camp Rd will no longer have the all day high frequency 385. It will be covered by the S100 Ashgrove West to City. It will also be covered by the P382 and P383 from The Gap at peak times.

See: Route-385.png


* With the 385 directed down Waterworks it appears this corridor will gain a direct service to the Cultural Centre for the first time. The hand drawn maps seem to terminate F6 at the QSBS but the computer images show lines going across the bridge.

Hand Drawn (see blue line): Route-379.png

Computer generated: seq-network-review-part3-proposed-network.pdf (Page 32)


* Almost all services seem to be travelling down countess street, turning right and then right again into the busway and through Roma St and KGS. This will make the services far more reliable and timely as they will avoid the surface road gridlock you often get coming in/out of the CBD. Excellent.


* The KGS bus station is being reconfigured to be a "lead stop" station. Does this mean it will be like the cultural centre platform where all buses go to the end stop where possible ? This would mean we could wait at the same stop and get the next bus from any route covering our destination...as often mentioned on here this would be just fantastic for frequency/loading:

"Signage and branding works. Reconfiguration of bus stop zones and passenger platforms (including bus stop gating) to convert the station into a lead stop arrangement"

See: seq-network-review-part4-implementation.pdf (Search for "lead stop")


* The dense parts of Ashgrove/Red Hill/Paddington etc are getting some new secondary routes that should be interesting to watch:

- S102 Marist Ashgrove to City running along Fulcher Rd/Enoggera Tce.
- S113 Inner Western Connector running along Fulcher RD/Arthur Tce into Bardon. Also connects through Ashgrove to Kelvin Grove College/urban village.
- S110 Ashgrove to Mitchelton zig zag route.

See: Route-372.png


* The S99 Outer Loop provides a north/south route through Red Hill/Paddington along Enoggera Tce/Given Tce/Baroona Rd.

See: Route-373.png


* Out of peak people away from Waterworks Rd at The Gap will connect to the F6 Gap to The City by catching the S112 The Gap Local loop bus down to Waterworks Rd.

See: Route-381.png


* People away from Waterworks in The Gap will still have services travelling down the secondary roads direct into town during peak. Also whoever draws the Maroon Glider gets the Ashgrove end wrong It goes down Elimatta Drive into Stewart Rd and terminates at the Coles, not the Woolies on Ashgrove Ave.

See: Route-385.png

[newbris]

SuperStopsMap by newbris, on Flickr

See: seq-network-review-part4-implementation.pdf

[Cam]

Well put Gazza 

The off peak frequency on the Beenleigh Line should be doubled, at least to Coopers Plains to reduce waiting time for those transferring from the proposed new bus services.

[newbris]

SuperStopsInfrastructure2 by newbris, on Flickr

See: seq-network-review-part4-implementation.pdf

[ozbob]

There is some concern with the cessation of the 104.  For many it is a useful connection into PA.

The locals were told that the 104 was going to replace the Tennyson rail services, and they now see the removal of the 104 as adding further insult to injury.

104 comments from TL

This route will be removed. The coverage of this route will be replaced by a combination of the new secondary route #501 INDOOROOPILLY TO GARDEN CITY and the extension to Yeronga of frequent route #4 NEW FARM TO YERONGA. Oxley Road at Seventeen Mile Rocks and Sherwood will only have access to bus services in peak periods due to proximity to rail line (stations are less than 1km away). Park Road at Annerley is no longer provided a service as this area is well serviced by rail. It is recommended that in the future as the demand for public transport increases in the areas where this service operates that a demand responsive transport system be considered as the first step to reintroducing access to the public transport network.

Map --> http://translink.com.au/resources/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review/Route-104.png

Anyone got any views/comments on the 104?

[#Metro]

Rail replacement is provided by S501. I used to live near this route, and catch it - it was mostly empty all the time despite TL's efforts. PA hospital access can be achieved by catching train and then changing to bus at Park Road to ge to the PA Hospital Busway.

Able bodied persons can get off at South Brisbane Cemetery and walk, and I think a DRT would be best for those not able. Many hospital folk who use the Beenleigh line walk from Dutton Park station.

I think TL should introduce the changes and see after 6 months if the problem is still there.