Brisbane commute fourth worst in nation with 35 minutes wasted each day
SEQ’s traffic remains a hot topic and now there is new evidence to show just how bad things are. SEE THE NUMBERS
Brisbane motorists now face the fourth-worst commute in Australia and wasted more than half an hour a day stuck in traffic, a new study has revealed.
And the study showed the Gold Coast was sixth worst, prompting the RACQ to call for upgrades to freeways and interchanges as well as better public transport near the city centre.
The analysis of car satellite navigation data last calendar year found that Brisbane drivers spent 85 minutes behind the wheel each day during a typical 47km round trip to work.
The optimal travel time for a round trip to work was only 59 minutes.
That was the fourth-worst result in Australia, behind Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide.
It was almost as bad on the Gold Coast, where motorists wasted two days, four hours and 45 minutes each year stuck in traffic, the sixth-worst in Australia.
Car insurer iSelect also crunched 2021 Census and Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) numbers to calculate the cost of traffic jams for different occupations.
Full-time Brisbane workers lost $3447 a year, on average, also the fourth worst in the country.
The average full-time Gold Coast worker lost $2443, the seventh-worst nationally.
The costs were based on extra fuel consumption as well as unpaid working hours.
The study revealed doctors, defence force members, police and tradies were among the occupations most affected by traffic snarls.
“Our research shows that Australians are losing millions of hours and billions of dollars each year stuck in traffic,’’ iSelect general manager of General Insurance, Adrian Bennett, said.
“But congestion doesn’t just hit the wallet, it also increases the risk of accidents.
“Stop-start driving, heavy traffic and driver frustration can make the roads more hazardous, especially during peak hours.’’
RACQ Head of Public Policy, Michael Kane, said road congestion was always going to get worse in a growing city.
“You can’t build your way out of this problem, no big city has managed to do it,’’ Dr Kane said.
“We will always be playing catch up.
“What we need to be doing is moving as many people as we can over to public transport and focusing (road improvements) on things which will help people who have no choice other than driving.’’
Dr Kane said there should be a particular effort to improve freeways and interchanges, including exit 38 (Stapylton-Jacobs Well Rd) on the M1 and exit 45 on the M1 (at Ormeau). A business case was under way on exit 45.
He said that in Sydney the biggest public transport users were those with university degrees, but people on low incomes also had to be helped.
Better Transport Queensland president Rowan Gray said people would always choose the most convenient transport option.
“But more lanes must be a last resort. We need more frequent bus and train services so if you work late or miss your bus or train, you know you won’t have to wait long for another,’’ he said.
“The lack of high frequency buses in the outer suburbs and cross-town services is a particular problem in Brisbane.’’
Mr Gray said the huge success of Brisbane’s BUZ program demonstrated that, however very few new services had been added since the Maroon Glider in 2013.
He also said roads were highly inefficient people movers. The long-awaited Gympie Rd tunnel, for example, was estimated to cost $8 billion but would deliver just four trains worth of capacity.
