Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia, is dealing with traffic issues that, according to estimates, will double congestion costs to AUD 5.9 billion (USD 4.4 billion) by 2030 and will increase costs to AUD 9 billion (USD 6.7 billion) in South East Queensland (SEQ). The authorities’ estimates show that these are the highest growths compared to the other capitals. Consequently, it is necessary to establish efficient and accessible multimodal transport systems to meet transport demands and to tackle congestion.
It is known that public transport demand is determined by an increase of the population, as well as a higher level of work force occupancy. By 2041, Brisbane is expected to experience a 4% increase of population, a 1% increase in its region (Brisbane LGA) and a 1.8% increase in South East Queensland. Under these circumstances, regional planning will help facilitate the new “green” areas in the regions located 50-60 km away from the city which will benefit from the optimisation of public transport planning so as to provide efficient connections to citizens. The percentage of the people working in Brisbane LGA and travelling in the adjacent regions is estimated to increase by 31-42% and the development of the public transport system will set the definition and transformation of the whole region.
South East Queensland (SEQ) is Queensland’s most populated region (3,4 million citizens) representing over 70% of the country’s population, while the region’s transport system, including roads, buses, ferries, railways and urban railways provide 180 million journeys a year. Currently, private vehicles represent 80% of the total number of journeys, while public transport has a 7,5% share in SEQ. However, in the central business district it increases to 58% due to the quality of services, infrastructure and rolling stock. According to the State Transport Department, the most important factors in choosing public transport are safety, reliability and a fair tariff system (other factors include time performance, frequency, accessibility and information supply). In turn, Brisbane transport system includes multimodal journeys and the radial network structure is focused on direct journeys from suburbs to the city centre. For the development of the public transport system, the authorities’ vision relies on both infrastructure extension, as well as on increasing the ”turn up and go” frequency, the construction of new transfer points and hubs to cut waiting times and significantly reduce the congestion of the transport networks that transits the city.
Railways respond to bus challenges
Using the “Connecting Brisbane” strategy, the authorities plan to transform the entire city and the transport system into an efficient, performing and well-developed system that could coherently meet the future transport demand. For the next 4 years, estimates show the allocation of “major investments” in railways, metro, buses and to unlock the capacity of main public transport networks. The vision is to create a core public transport system with adjacent services to promote the complementarity of the Cross River Rail and Brisbane Metro projects. “We have very busy transport segments and we need the metro system and the Cross River Rail to unlock them. Also, it is necessary for the bus and rail systems to be complementarian to establish a reliable public transport network with increased frequency in Brisbane”, declared Transport Minister Jackie Trad.
The authorities’ objective is to build urban rail networks to reduce a significant part of road traffic by taking over the passengers that use buses, but also by attracting the passengers who currently use their personal vehicles. It is estimated that by 2041 the demand for bus transport will double reaching 730 thousand passengers a day. Consequently, two big rail projects will become the perfect solution to face the existing traffic and to meet future mobility demands. Thus, Cross River Rail and Brisbane Metro, next to the modernisation of transfer stations and the construction of new ones, will contribute to the increase of integrated capacity, as well as reliability in the city centre and to the suburbs.
Cross River Rail is an infrastructure project prioritised by the government and a vital railway connection that will contribute to the transformation of the transport system from South East Queensland. The project includes the construction of a 10.2 km railway from Dutton Park and Bowen Hills (Brisbane suburbs), of which 5.9 km will be built in the undergrround, under Brisbane River and central business district (CBD) connecting the rail networks from the north and from the south. The project also includes the construction of 4 new large capacity stations (in the city) and the modernisation of the Exhibition Station. The project is estimated at AUD 5.4 billion (USD 4 billion) and in June 2016, the government granted AUD 850 million (USD 634 million). The construction of the project is expected to take five years, and, after it will be put into operation, it will take up to 18,500 car trips off major arterial roads every day and it will provide a capacity with an equivalent of a 30 lane highway. In February 2017, the Ministry of Transport launched the project for public consultation.
Compared to the big Australian cities, Brisbane has a railway network with limited coverage and capacity, especially in the city centre. The existing intercity network capacity is insufficient to meet estimated demands to access the centre, requiring an additional capacity. At present, there is a series of projects under implementation including the Cross River Rail and European Train Control System – Level 2 (Inner City), but these projects will not solve capacity and congestion problems, a metro network being also necessary.
Announced in 2016, Brisbane Metro has been named as the best solution for reducing agglomeration in the bus transport system, providing underground transport services through the city centre with connections to the suburbs. The project consists in the construction of a 21 km network served by 60 metro trains of large capacity. 11 of the 18 stations will be transfer points to the buses, the metro and the rail networks, two stations being also connected to Cross River Rail. Estimated at over USD 700 million, the project will be completed in 2022 with works estimated to start in 2019.
This article was published in the June issue of the Railway PRO Magazine that analyses the latest and most important railway projects around the world.
by Pamela Luica
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