Sunshine Coast to Brisbane rail: Residents reveal support for major transport project

Residents have revealed their support for heavy rail from Brisbane to Maroochydore, while governments remain at loggerheads over funding. VOTE IN OUR POLL

The overwhelming majority of residents on the Sunshine Coast want a heavy rail connection from Brisbane to Maroochydore, according to a new poll.

The results come as the Sunshine Coast Daily launches the Train for the Games campaign in a bid to push for the rail connection amid a population boom in the region and as the 2032 Olympic Games creates a new appetite for unprecedented infrastructure funding.

A Daily survey of 333 people, including a street poll, and social media and online polls, revealed 96 per cent of respondents found the rail connection was necessary.

Brisbane resident Ray Bailey told the Daily on Tuesday he was “absolutely” in support.

“Traffic is appalling between here and Brisbane … like everything it will cost money but I would imagine it would be a good thing,” he said.

Mountain Creek resident Paul Jones told the Daily on Tuesday that he would be supportive of heavy rail from Maroochydore, but he did not want to see a light rail system along the coastline.

“I’d also like to see better links to Nambour and Woombye as we see more housing in those areas,” Mr Jones said.

Kuluin resident Chris Gallop said it was a great idea and he would use it to travel to Suncorp Stadium for sports matches.

Land for a rail extension from Beerwah to Caloundra and Maroochydore is already set aside as part of the Caboolture to Maroochydore Corridor Study, known as CAMCOS.

The then Queensland Government study was completed in 2001 when the Sunshine Coast had a population of 187.442.

In October 1999 the impact assessment study and aerial photographs of the area were on public display for six weeks in preparation of the report looking into the development of an integrated transportation system.

Since then the Sunshine Coast’s population has boomed to about 340,000 and is expected to surpass 500,000 by 2041.

In the 2022 budget the LNP costed heavy rail from Beerwah to Maroochydore at $3.2bn based on a 2019 study and committed $1.6bn towards it.

However the state government disagrees with that estimate and is awaiting the results of a $6m joint funded state and federal government planning study.

Find out what 35 residents had to say:

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In November Queensland transport Minister Mark Bailey described the heavy rail proposal as “absolutely viable” and revealed the state would formally raise the expansion of rail services from Beerwah into the Sunshine Coast this year.

Heavy rail was raised by incumbent Fairfax LNP MP Ted O’Brien as an alternative to fast rail in a bid to have the project delivered before the 2032 Olympic Games.

The Sunshine Coast is expected to be home to four key Olympic venues and host sporting events including football, basketball, marathons, mountain biking, cycling and kiteboarding.

More than $2bn worth of infrastructure funding is available from the International Olympic Committee to deliver legacy projects.

Mr O’Brien, who is also the Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s special envoy for the Games, is proposing the state and federal governments joint fund the rail infrastructure.

Incumbent Fisher MP Andrew Wallace, a known rail advocate, said it was an important project that all sides of politics should back.

He said the costs were based on a credible business case.

It came after Infrastructure Australia left the project off its priority list in 2021 because it found the North Coast Connect business case did not stack up economically and it was not clear who would deliver it.

Federal Labor criticised the LNP’s pledge as an “election bribe” but did not respond to questions of if it would match the $1.6bn funding.

Fairfax and Fisher candidates Sue Anderson and Judene Andrews have said they were in support of rail to Maroochydore.

Over coming weeks, the Daily will reveal what is holding the CAMCOS project back, why the region is in desperate need for better transport options and what can be done about it.