SEQ Bus Network Review - Gold Coast (Surfside)

[SurfRail]

As I have recently been saying, in light of the Brisbane debacle I am redirecting my efforts to trying to get a good outcome for the Gold Coast.

The advance screening I have been given of potential span of hours and frequency shows that there will be serious improvements in a lot of areas.  Other areas I am more concerned about.

I had knocked up something previously once these "Stage 3" changes were released but I have commenced going through in Google Earth and looking at specific issues.

There are 3 headline issues for me.

1. Design something that employs best practice principles, particularly for the 12 legacy routes.  Simple, direct, legible, easy to follow, clockface timetabling (even if it isn't necessarily frequent service).

2. Expand the coverage of the frequent network.  There will be a number of frequent routes, being the 700, 701, 702/712 common route, 703, 704 and 750.  This was a better outcome than I expected, but even still I would like to push them to see if we can do better, particularly with span of hours.

3. Design a network which adopts what I will term a "modular design philosophy", so that when the trams start running next year you can basically detach certain legs of bus routes which can't yet be removed (eg Griffith to Southport, Southport to Broadbeach) without needing to go through anything even approaching this review process.  I know this is what is guiding them at the moment, but I think they need to be even more explicit about it and be more concrete about what the system will look like post-2014.

I have attached my KMZ which sets out how I am dealing with it.  I am sketching 4 things:

1. The current network (in blue).

2. TransLink's "proposed" routes (in orange).  There are some assumptions in this, and some of it is informed by the planning they showed me, because the raster images are still fairly faulty and obviously don't give a particularly good overview of any area other than the area immediately adjacent to a particular numbered service.

3.  My "suggested" routes (in green).  These are generally TransLink's with some tweaks (except in some cases where I think the TransLink proposal needs more work where I have split things up or merged them eg "716/717", "756A" and "756B" etc.

4.  The individual little tweaks (still in green) where it is feasible to sketch them.  This is mainly so when it is ready, anybody interested (hopefully the planning team) can see exactly where my opinion differs from theirs by showing #2 against #4 for any given route and look at the explanations I have included with the individual tweaks.

In some cases it has just been easier to just rely on my "suggested" route because the differences are that significant that there is no point (eg with my proposed 726 compared to their fairly stunted version).

Any thoughts (either on approach or on the mainly Coomera/Broadwater area routes I have done?)  So far I have only gone as far as the extent of the "blue" network I have mapped today, so there may be some things missing, but I believe that anywhere north and west of Helensvale should be complete.

[ozbob]

Gold Coast Region  --> http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review-2013/gold-coast

Our plan - a new bus network for the Gold Coast

Our future direction for the Gold Coast is to increase key east-west services and to support the implementation of the Gold Coast light rail through high frequency bus corridors to key activity centres ...

New Gold Coast high frequency bus network services

More --> http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review-2013/gold-coast

[Set in train]

Gold Coast Region  --> http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review-2013/gold-coast;

I saw this on the front page of the TL site too. It is completely pointless of them to do so without any further information.

Want to know the frequency and span of upgraded services, how buses will link with light rail (eg bus to meet each tram at GCUH to go to Helensvale? More transfer penalties created?), want to know the limited stops proposed for the 702 (great idea) and if timetables of services linking to trains will be improved eg. ending the transfer penalty leaving a station and when arriving at stations not missing the train (eg. 745 disgrace).

Putting up a pretty link to a webpage not updated since 3 June is poor form.

[James]

I saw this on the front page of the TL site too. It is completely pointless of them to do so without any further information.

Want to know the frequency and span of upgraded services, how buses will link with light rail (eg bus to meet each tram at GCUH to go to Helensvale? More transfer penalties created?), want to know the limited stops proposed for the 702 (great idea) and if timetables of services linking to trains will be improved eg. ending the transfer penalty leaving a station and when arriving at stations not missing the train (eg. 745 disgrace).

Putting up a pretty link to a webpage not updated since 3 June is poor form.

No, it has been updated with span of hours. Bob's link didn't seem to work, this link should work: http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review-2013/gold-coast (I think it was the semi-colon which did it). On the whole the span of hours seems to look good - a few routes seem to have gotten an early haircut though, not too sure about that.

[Set in train]

Cheers James, it didn't update for me either, now it has.

[ozbob]

http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review-2013/gold-coast

Stage 1





Stage 2

[SurfRail]

Will review later and give my impressions once I get home and have a good look.

[ozbob]

^ 

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

Twitter

Robert Dow ‏@Robert_Dow 1h

Gold Coast is transforming with improved PT options --> http://railbotforum.org/mbs/index.php?topic=9793.msg132472#msg132472 ... #qldpol well done @TransLinkSEQ @cityofgoldcoast

[SurfRail]

There are some serious problems to be resolved.  Span of hours mainly - route designs are better than what I was generally expecting and the route numbering has been improved.

Put it this way though - if there is no change to what was released yesterday, it will either be $30 per day in taxi fares or I'll have to move.

[ozbob]

^ yo,  I think there is some fine tuning to go on yet.  The core stuff looks good!

[STB]

Will depend if they have the budget for it.  Stage 2 perhaps when they delete the coastal routes to free up route KMs?

[techblitz]

surfrail what are your issues with span of hours and on which routes?
Seems to me as though they have done what translink wanted to do with Brisbane...
Increase number of frequent routes but decrease span of hours...

[SurfRail]

surfrail what are your issues with span of hours and on which routes?
Seems to me as though they have done what translink wanted to do with Brisbane...
Increase number of frequent routes but decrease span of hours...

That's not really what was going to happen to Brisbane.  They wanted more frequent routes that didn't operate at high frequency to a blanket standard of 6am-11pm if nobody was catching services late at night.  There is an enormous difference between culling late night BUZ services to create better day-time frequency elsewhere and just cannibalising low-frequency feeder routes which are the only offering and already have a limited span of hours.  The Gold Coast does not have the massive network duplication issues that Brisbane has (and will still have), so there is not as much efficiency to wring out.

They have also done it fairly unevenly.  Last service on my route appears to be before 5pm, on other routes which are currently less busy last departure is around 9pm.  Apart from a very limited number of services (Route 737 for instance, which is only intended to be a local shopper/hospital run), there is no route on the Gold Coast which should have its last departure before 6pm.

Positives:
- High-frequency services are laid out well
- Route numbering is logical
- All services run every day of the week except for the Clearwater routes (746 and 749) and the new cross-town route 739, which are weekdays only.  Clearwater is a step backwards but weekend services at all on the 747 and current 18A are steps forwards, as are the upping of weekend frequency on several routes (including mine).
- The feeders are generally OK in terms of route design.  Some tweaks should be made to improve connectivity to rail and major attractors and to avoid inflicting double transfer penalties.
- Clear staging plan for when LRT comes online.
- Theme park services will probably work better now.

Negatives:
- Span of hours is frankly atrocious on many routes.  Hourly headways 6am to 6-7pm should generally be a minimum, not a luxury, especially on weekdays.  Nerang is very significantly affected because somebody travelling from Southport or Nerang Station to the southern areas of Nerang can currently get home until midnight, and now will need to make a connection by 5pm-ish to get home.  On top of this a forced transfer is required at Nerang, which would not be so bad as long as the feeders actually existed.
- 3 hour gaps apparently for some routes.

They are going to lose patronage because of some of these changes.  Even if their grand plan is to up frequency and span of hours from June for feeder routes as well as upping the 740 and 710 to high-frequency, this is a pretty backwards way of doing it.

[James]

There are some serious problems to be resolved.  Span of hours mainly - route designs are better than what I was generally expecting and the route numbering has been improved.

Put it this way though - if there is no change to what was released yesterday, it will either be $30 per day in taxi fares or I'll have to move.

I have to agree. I looked at the changes, and anybody looking to get anywhere south of Pacific Fair from the railway line after around 7pm at night on a weekend will need to change at Pacific Fair!

The 765 short-runnings, while they were low patronage, I think are very much necessary to connect the southern Gold Coast well.

[nathandavid88]

I certainly hope the span of hours on some of those routes isn't let locked in because they really do suck! People who commute to Brisbane and catch feeder buses are especially going to be affected, with routes finishing up at 5:15pm or earlier.

I have to agree. I looked at the changes, and anybody looking to get anywhere south of Pacific Fair from the railway line after around 7pm at night on a weekend will need to change at Pacific Fair!

Is that really such an issue? We'll have a high frequency transport corridor between Southport and Tweed Heads until late at night (1x 15min frequency until 9ish + 1x20min frequency until 10:30ish + 1 15-30min frequency 24 hours). It makes sense to feed that core corridor at night for maximum usage, rather than trying to sustain having a lot of late night-running suburban routes all suffering from individual low usage. The only things I personally would change about this arrangement is to have another late night feeder running direct between Varsity Lakes Station and Burleigh, and I think that there needs to be a later weekend link between Southport and Helensvale that goes via the Uni & Hospital. Latest services that go there run until 6:30pm on a weekend, which really isn't adequate.

[James]

Is that really such an issue? We'll have a high frequency transport corridor between Southport and Tweed Heads until late at night (1x 15min frequency until 9ish + 1x20min frequency until 10:30ish + 1 15-30min frequency 24 hours). It makes sense to feed that core corridor at night for maximum usage, rather than trying to sustain having a lot of late night-running suburban routes all suffering from individual low usage. The only things I personally would change about this arrangement is to have another late night feeder running direct between Varsity Lakes Station and Burleigh, and I think that there needs to be a later weekend link between Southport and Helensvale that goes via the Uni & Hospital. Latest services that go there run until 6:30pm on a weekend, which really isn't adequate.

And that's what I would support with regards to the 765. If you take a look at the journey planner, the trip takes 15 minutes longer from Robina to Palm Beach going via the new frequent network route than the current 765. There's also the issue that at night pax must remember to get off at Robina and take an alternative route. This isn't good PT policy as it makes things more complex to remember, and makes it very possible that pax will travel to Varsity only to find there isn't another bus until tomorrow morning! Its even worse if you are coming from further north.

I wouldn't call the 765 a low-patronage coverage route - its probably one of the best-performing routes serving the southern Gold Coast, ignoring the trunk highway routes. A simple Varsity - Burleigh connection meeting every train is all that is needed.

[SurfRail]

The 765 shouldn't go anywhere near Varsity Lakes in my view.  Robina - Christine Avenue - Burleigh, the way it was before.

Neither the 761 nor 765 will go to Robina Station anymore, which is a real weakness.  Meanwhile, the 759 goes to both Robina and Varsity.

Few other annoyances which I hope they will look at:
- 726 - terminates at Coomera Station, forcing a double transfer to even get to the nearest shopping centre of any note at Coomera City
- 736 - terminates at Nerang, not Nerang Station
- 745 - still goes to Surfers.  This should be killed off now and the resources invested in improving feeders.
- 747 now goes right past Bond Uni without going in - takes a nice fast route all the way down Ferry/Bundall/Bermuda from Southport to Cottesloe Drive as well, which makes it all the more galling.

Another big plus is they have reinstated the service between The Pines and John Flynn Hospital which vanished in 2007 and never should have been removed.

[somebody]

761 still hitting christine av and finishing early is a bit lame. Although it's good that it's been taken out of robina station.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Tapatalk 2

[James]

The 765 shouldn't go anywhere near Varsity Lakes in my view.  Robina - Christine Avenue - Burleigh, the way it was before.

Neither the 761 nor 765 will go to Robina Station anymore, which is a real weakness.  Meanwhile, the 759 goes to both Robina and Varsity.

At least it won't be as bad as it was pre-review. Pre-review, the bus served both, but timetabling wasn't changed meaning the 5-minute time saving from serving Varsity Lakes was effectively negated, and pax spent said saving waiting at a stop or at the station.

But I totally agree - no need to send the 761 or 765 to Varsity. 761 should hop on the motorway immediately after Robina Town Centre. I don't think 761 ending early is as bad as the 765 ending early - a connection can be made from the 765 and that won't cost too much time.

[SurfRail]

I'd be happy with the 761 doing what it does currently south of Varsity Lakes, but running via Scottsdale Drive to Robina Town Centre and terminating there (although I'm very skeptical about the advantages of this as opposed to just running to the station given the distances involved, the lack of facilities and layover area at the town centre etc).

The 765 should go back to what it was before Varsity Lakes opened.

Both the 761 and 765 services should meet every train at their connecting station, same as the 704 (current 715) and 710 (current 3) at Helensvale, 735 (current 20A from Nerang Rail to Southport), 740 and 745 at Nerang and the 750 also at Robina.  Some of these might not need to connect to every train after dark, but during daylight hours definitely should.  Shortworkings could still be used for some (eg 765).

[ozbob]

Sent to all outlets:

4th October 2013

Re: SEQ: Don't miss the bus, ferry or train!

Greetings,

TransLink have released more detailed information for the proposed public transport transformation for the Gold Coast.

See --> http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review-2013

Information sessions are listed there and it is important that people engage.

Overall the proposed changes in terms of the core frequent network are very positive.  There is some concern with some of the secondary feeders and span of hours.

Best wishes,
Robert

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

Media release 29 September 2013

SEQ: Don't miss the bus, ferry or train!

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 said we are about to enter a period where there is going to be a lot of changes to the bus network, parts of the rail network, and ferry network.

Robert Dow, Spokesman for RAIL Back On Track said:

"The TransLink bus review for greater south-east Queensland, and changes flagged in the Brisbane Bus review are being further progressively implemented."

"From 14 October 2013 there will be more very significant changes in the Brisbane Transport bus network.  These are well detailed on the TransLink website (1). Regular bus users should be encouraged to check out the planned changes now."

"The Sunshine Coast will have a new bus network (2).  This is to be implemented from late November 2013."

"Ipswich and the Western region will have a number of bus network changes implemented in December 2013 to coincide with the opening of the rail line from Richlands to Springfield Central (3)."

"New rail timetables for sector 2 - namely Ferny Grove, Shorncliffe, Cleveland, Gold Coast and Beenleigh lines are also planned for early 2014, together with a new bus network for the Gold Coast."

"There are  CityCat and ferry timetable changes from 21 October 2013 (4)."

"TransLink have been pro-active in flagging these changes however support from all the media would be appreciated in continuing to highlight these significant public transport network changes."

References:

1. http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review-2013/brisbane

2. http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review-2013/sunshine-coast

3. http://translink.com.au/travel-information/service-updates/seq-bus-network-review-2013/ipswich

4. http://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/traffic-transport/public-transport/citycat-ferry-services/citycat-ferry-timetable-changes/index.htm

Contact:

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

[somebody]

I'd be happy with the 761 doing what it does currently south of Varsity Lakes, but running via Scottsdale Drive to Robina Town Centre and terminating there (although I'm very skeptical about the advantages of this as opposed to just running to the station given the distances involved, the lack of facilities and layover area at the town centre etc).

The 765 should go back to what it was before Varsity Lakes opened.

Both the 761 and 765 services should meet every train at their connecting station, same as the 704 (current 715) and 710 (current 3) at Helensvale, 735 (current 20A from Nerang Rail to Southport), 740 and 745 at Nerang and the 750 also at Robina.  Some of these might not need to connect to every train after dark, but during daylight hours definitely should.  Shortworkings could still be used for some (eg 765).

Quite.  But it's really only the positioning rail services which I can accept not being met by buses, e.g. services arriving from Brisbane before 7am.  At the moment in peak hour the 761 and 765 only run every half hour, meeting every second train.  That's pretty weak.

After dark the rail service drops back to hourly far too early.  What?  2-hourly buses!  Or only delete a couple of trips so hourly at 8pm?  Not a fan.

[Set in train]

Lots of areas of the Gold Coast seem to be set to suffer less service.

Coomera Waters and all of Coomera east of the railway station have been crying out for public transport to connect with the trains after work.

Paradise Point has lost its late night buses, the legacy of the end-to-end coastal route has ended.

Mudgeeraba loses its connection from the 750 and will be in a very bad way. Seems to be a 748 (Nerang to Robina via Gilston and Tallai) every 60 mins weekdays from 6:30am and on weekends from 8.30am to 5.20pm. Also 758 Robina Town Centre to Merrimac in shopper hrs 9.15am to 4.50pm weekdays (60 mins) and weekends 9.50am to 4.15pm (120 minutes).

[SurfRail]

My initial observations on the highway corridor, "Broadwater" and outer northern area routes (700-729) are set out in the attached.  I will be refining this a bit and hopefully will have the lot done by tomorrow for a bit of discussion and refining during next week.

I have also created a Google Earth KMZ which (after a reasonable effort) should be fairly accurate - shows the current network and the proposed changes.  There is a bit of creative interpretation of a few routings (eg the 702 and 705 do what I think will have to happen between Main Beach and Surfers even if the network guys say otherwise).

Also note the 767 depicted on the website currently links incorrectly to the 766.  I have just assumed the route will be the same as present for now.

There is a time pressure to have this sorted during the week, so would appreciate it if anybody has any feedback.

[Set in train]

There is a time pressure to have this sorted during the week, so would appreciate it if anybody has any feedback.

Glad you picked up on 702 route deficiencies.

Route 704 (now 715) with a listed span to 11:40pm has had services cut after that, currently a 12:34am and 1:34am run to Sea World.

Your comments about the Ormeau/Coomera services are spot on, to not have connecting buses available for those leaving Brisbane from 5 - 6pm is very poor.

I am also surprised that Paradise Point is losing service from after 9pm instead of current last service. This will mean there are no buses from north of the Gold Coast Highway after that time.

Eagerly awaiting comments for your own area and central suburbs.

[Set in train]

Banner ad at bottom of page 7 of today's Gold Coast Bulletin.

Quarter page ad, right hand bottom of page 9 of today's Gold Coast Bulletin with consultation times.

[somebody]

What replaces the 709?  Seems that what is now a direct and well utilised trip is now indirect on a 714/715.

[SurfRail]

Complete version of my comments now attached.  I have filled it with page breaks so it is easier to read (one route per page).

KMZ is also attached for convenience, but has not changed from the last version uploaded above.

This is still rough as guts.  If there is any commentary, please throw it at me in case I have missed or glossed over something, or anybody has any brainwaves.

[STB]

Just a quick question, does there need to be a link between Griffith University and Arundel to Harbourtown as route 709 provides currently?  I couldn't see any replacement for that.

[SurfRail]

What replaces the 709?  Seems that what is now a direct and well utilised trip is now indirect on a 714/715.

Transfer at Harbour Town.  The utilisation is actually not that exceptional.

Helensvale to Griffith via Route 3 is and always has been faster, which is why that will be going to high frequency (new Route 710 initially, then with frequency upgrades in mid-2014).  Apparently there is only very limited demand for trips from between Arundel and Harbour Town down Olsen Ave hence no great loss.  Majority of the demand from Harbour Town is for Helensvale or the coastline, and majority of demand for Griffith University is for Helensvale, the surrounding area and points south. 

I remember being told that the reasoning behind Route 719 was to take the most heavily patronised sections of a number of routes and create something fairly direct that could feed into the light rail at GCUH.  I think it will be a good move.

[SurfRail]

Just a quick question, does there need to be a link between Griffith University and Arundel to Harbourtown as route 709 provides currently?  I couldn't see any replacement for that.

They've actually been reasonably clever about this and it is something I approve.

The only bus stop anywhere between Helensvale and Harbour Town which won't have a direct service to Griffith Uni is the stop on Brisbane Road located at the intersection of Arundel Drive, as this stop is after where the 3 (now 710) turns off.  There are bus stops here for the 710 just around the corner from the "main" stops.  The 710 will only be high-frequency from mid-2014 so while there will be a slight degradation for this area from removing the 709, it will eventually be much improved over the current position.

This avoids over-servicing given that the 704 will be every 15 minutes through this stretch.  When the 710 gets its Stage 2 upgrade there should be 8 buses per hour between Helensvale and Arundel Drive during the day.

[STB]

Just a quick question, does there need to be a link between Griffith University and Arundel to Harbourtown as route 709 provides currently?  I couldn't see any replacement for that.

They've actually been reasonably clever about this and it is something I approve.

The only bus stop anywhere between Helensvale and Harbour Town which won't have a direct service to Griffith Uni is the stop on Brisbane Road located at the intersection of Arundel Drive, as this stop is after where the 3 (now 710) turns off.  There are bus stops here for the 710 just around the corner from the "main" stops.  The 710 will only be high-frequency from mid-2014 so while there will be a slight degradation for this area from removing the 709, it will eventually be much improved over the current position.

This avoids over-servicing given that the 704 will be every 15 minutes through this stretch.  When the 710 gets its Stage 2 upgrade there should be 8 buses per hour between Helensvale and Arundel Drive during the day.

Hmm, interesting.  I would've thought that there was demand and a logical link between Griffith University and Harbour Town, but okay if you say so.

[Set in train]

Thoughts on Route 731+

Strongly agree with your thoughts on 745, it is unreliable route, a reduction of the redundant section would be great.

Interchanging on that brings me to another thought, could construction of the Broadbeach LR terminus/bus interchange be expedited to make use of it soon for bus service changes?

More thoughts to follow later on Tue. Great work again SR.

[somebody]

What replaces the 709?  Seems that what is now a direct and well utilised trip is now indirect on a 714/715.

Transfer at Harbour Town.  The utilisation is actually not that exceptional.

It's one of the few routes on the GC that I've used and it had a fair few people on it.  Didn't also show that it was a profitable route in the review?

[SurfRail]

Hmm, interesting.  I would've thought that there was demand and a logical link between Griffith University and Harbour Town, but okay if you say so.

This will still exist.  Route 719 just comes from Paradise Point/Runaway Bay/Pine Ridge Road rather than from Helensvale.  This way you have Helensvale to Griffith, Helensvale to Harbour Town (to Southport) and Griffith to Harbour Town (to points north) routes, but not a single Helensvale-Harbour Town-Griffith route.

[SurfRail]

What replaces the 709?  Seems that what is now a direct and well utilised trip is now indirect on a 714/715.

Transfer at Harbour Town.  The utilisation is actually not that exceptional.

It's one of the few routes on the GC that I've used and it had a fair few people on it.  Didn't also show that it was a profitable route in the review?

I think most of the patronage is made up of journeys that can be catered to just as well by the combination of Routes 700, 704, 710 and 719 (ie Helensvale to Harbour Town, Harbour Town to Southport-Broadbeach, Helensvale to Griffith, Southport-Broadbeach to Griffith, Griffith to Harbour Town).

Probably there is a lot of "generic" highway patronage that can just as easily be absorbed by route 700 and 703 south of Southport - particularly the 703 which will provide a more direct service to Harbour Town, as it does now, than the 709.

[SurfRail]

If anybody wants to add their 2 bob into my summary, last chance will be by sometime this evening.  I am having a phone hook-up with some people at GCCC this afternoon and will finalise it this evening in time for Bob to take to the PTAG meeting tomorrow.

[somebody]

I guess I'm still not happy with what they are doing with every route I've used on the coast. 709 761 765. Soon to add 740, which I also note cuts out to early.

With the additional night link route, makes it a real shame there isn't all night rail service on friday/sat night.

Sent from my GT-S6102 using Tapatalk 2

[Set in train]

If anybody wants to add their 2 bob into my summary, last chance will be by sometime this evening.  I am having a phone hook-up with some people at GCCC this afternoon and will finalise it this evening in time for Bob to take to the PTAG meeting tomorrow.

How did the GCCC phone conversation go this afternoon?

In addition to noticing the late night cut backs of the 704, definitely feel that cutbacks of feeders from Coomera for after work drop offs should be addressed. Same for Nerang and Helensvale. Feeders should be serving customers leaving Brisbane until at least 7:30pm.

702 route comment was very welcome.

Need special mention for the 745 to end at Broadbeach GCLR station - the most unreliable section is that from Pac Fair to Surfers Paradise.

740, 745 and 761 buses also need to be ready to leave the station from 3 - 5 mins after a train arrives. Same for the 704.

All connecting buses with trains also need ample time to arrive at a station, 745 is the most problematic, 761 also can be tight transfer.

I had a most ridiculous problem with the 745 on a Sunday night, arrived at Nerang, scheduled bus left 10 mins late as timetable at that time of night provides too much time, these are the problems that need to be eliminated.

Hope that has been of help.

I plan to visit the information session either at the surf club on Saturday or Harbour Town on Sunday.

[SurfRail]

Thanks Set in train, broadly concur.  I have left out any comments about timetabling specifics in the hope they might import some of the concepts which will feature in the Sunshine Coast proposals for the 605/615 etc.

Wasn't able to speak to GCCC as they had a flurry of councillor enquiries today - will chat tomorrow, but it will be after Bob puts the attached submission in which I am treating as finalised for present purposes.  I know they want to see improvements in what is planned.

Some new thoughts from me although not many (eg Route 4 extension to St Andrews may be more viable if the route extended to Varsity Lakes via Old Coach Rd, which would create a service for the people in the Oyster Creek estate at the bottom of Bermuda St).

I'll get along to one of the weekend sessions somewhere.