Back to the future: Infrastructure Brisbane desperately needs before 2032 Games

In a decade’s time, the eyes of the world will be on Brisbane as it prepares for the 2032 Games. Will our transport infrastructure be ready? These are the big-ticket items the city desperately needs before then.

What will Brisbane look like in 10 years time?

How will the River City have changed in preparation for the 2032 Olympic Games.

By then, infrastructure such as Cross River Rail will have become an unassuming, everyday part of our public transport network, as will the part-bus, part-train Brisbane Metro, and the Star Casino at Queen’s Wharf will have long since blended into Brisbane’s skyline, which could also be unrecognisable by then.

Eagle Street Pier, too, will have been redeveloped, and the Brisbane Live Precinct will have been built above the Roma Street railyards.

Fiona Doherty was among about 100 people this year who became some of the only ones who will ever walk inside a Cross River Rail tunnel.

Those are just some of the changes already in the pipeline for Brisbane, but what about the developments you want to see?

Reddit user joshman94 posed that question to Brisbane residents in a thread dedicated to generating new ideas for the River City: “What change would you like to see in Brisbane within the next 10 years?”

WHAT CHANGES DO YOU WANT TO SEE BEFORE 2032? TELL US IN THE COMMENTS BELOW

Public transport seems to be the main thing we want more of, particularly before the world descends on Queensland for the Olympic Games.

The Countrylink XPT fast passenger train operating between Sydney and Melbourne.

“We need more train lines into more suburbs,” one user said.

“And they need to start, like, yesterday on fixing the public transport system if it’s to be up, running and functional for the Olympics,” another added.

Suggested public transport additions include an extension of the Gold Coast train line to facilitate travel on the network from Brisbane Airport to Coolangatta, as well as a high-speed rail link between Brisbane, interstate capitals, and Queensland regional and coastal centres.

Others proposed changing the layout of roads in and around the Brisbane CBD in a bold idea to demolish all major riverside roads – including the Riverside Expressway and Coronation Drive – in favour of an abundance of riverside parkland and walking paths.

An old Brisbane tram. One Reddit commenter said, “Trams connecting the city would be a huge, long-term project that should have happened years ago.”

“Turn the brown snake blue again,” one person said. “Also buy back 2m of all private waterfront to create footpaths along the whole length of the river,” another suggested.

No one said how they planned to change the colour of the river or where they proposed to divert inner city traffic to, but who knows?

By 2032, we could be zipping around in flying cars just like Marty McFly in 2015 in Back to the Future, though we all know how that prediction turned out.

While the people behind that idea seemingly prefer the lure of a walk along the river, others went for a stroll down memory lane to 1960s Brisbane.

Indooroopilly resident Fiona Nichols experienced increased road noise from nearby Centenary Motorway. Picture: Richard Walker

“Trams connecting the city would be a huge, long-term project that should have happened years ago,” one person said.

“They should try to get more cars off the road, but they need people to be able to get from A to B quickly. Tram to Towong, tram to the Gabba, tram to Norman Park.

“The trains are ‘OK,’ but they are not enough.”

Some people made more pragmatic, realistic suggestions, including improved housing affordability and more medium-density accommodation options, particularly around train station hubs, inspired by those built around the Toowong and Milton stations.

The train line between the Gold Coast and Brisbane. Picture: Nigel Hallett

Improvements to the Western Freeways and Centenary Motorway were some of the most practical (and most likely) ideas put forward, while other, more environmentally focused posters, suggested more creek rehabilitations to improve water quality and “bring back native animals.”

But the reality is, no one knows what the next 10 years will bring for Brisbane and the rest of Queensland. Those are just some of the suggestions on offer, but we want to hear from you.