How Brisbane City Council should fix the city’s congestion

In just over two weeks voters will choose the council that will shape how the city moves for the next four years. Here’s what council should be doing to bust congestion, say advocates.

Brisbane City Council Buses cross the Victoria Bridge. Picture: AAP/Regi Varghese

VOTERS will go to the polls in just over two weeks to choose who will represent them and shape how residents will commute and move around Brisbane for the next four years.

Quest Community News asked key public and active transport and road infrastructure stakeholders and advocates what Brisbane City Council should deliver in the next term.

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RACQ head of public policy Rebecca Michael said that apart from delivering the Brisbane Metro, an incoming council needed to commit to another four-year congestion busting program.

Improvements needed to include dedicated intersection and corridor upgrades along key roads including Stanley St, Moggill Rd, Ipswich Rd, Enoggera Rd, Old Cleveland Rd, Coonan St and Oxley St, Bowen Bridge Rd, Milton Rd and Coronation Drive.

“We’d also be looking for council to commit to another four-year, $100 million Better Bikeways for Brisbane program … and the last priority is the level crossing upgrades,” she said.

General congestion traffic jam images. Brisbane CBD, 16th of January 2020. (AAP Image/Attila Csaszar)

Rail Back on Track’s Robert Dow, a public transport advocate, agreed whoever won needed to push ahead with the Brisbane Metro and overall improvement of the bus network.

“The other thing they need to do is support improved active transport options to railway stations, bus stations and transit hubs and other community centres,” he said.

“In some cases it’s quite difficult to access these things by foot and by bicycle and they need to support improved active transport options to allow people to use public transport.”

He said all parties needed to stop singling out certain demographics, routes or time periods for “inequitable” discounts and to instead lobby strongly for true fare reform for the region.

“It’s far better to have the overall system improved for everyone than have these small pockets of free travel, which are counter-productive to improving the network overall.”

He also supported the removal of level crossings.

A Brisbane City Council bus pictured on Gympie Road, Kedron. Picture: AAP/Josh Woning

Space for Cycling Brisbane spokeswoman Belinda Ward said the group had lobbied for a CBD minimum grid of protected bike lanes for more than four years.

“For a lot of people who ride to work or businesses in the CBD, they tell us the last part of the trip is really hostile,” she said.

“In the CBD … if we can get the bikes and scooters into a protected lane on the road, that would make things better for pedestrians.”

Other priorities were bikeways on Sylvan Rd, Toowong, to connect the Centenary Bikeway to the Bicentennial Bikeway, and on Vulture St to connect into the Woolloongabba Bikeway, which she said should be extended further east.

Ms Ward said neighbourhood streets should be speed limited to 30km/h to improve pedestrian and cyclist safety.

Emma Donaldson and Kathryn Al-Dhafeeri cycling. Picture: AAP/Claudia Baxter

TOP ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE PRIORITIES – RACQ

• Deliver Brisbane Metro
• A four-year congestion busting program focusing on intersection and corridor upgrades along Stanley St, Moggill Rd, Enoggera Rd, Old Cleveland Rd, Coonan St, Oxley St, Bowen Bridge Rd, Milton Rd and Coronation Drive
• Another four-year, $100 million Better Bikeways for Brisbane program
• Upgrade level crossings, with Coopers Plains, Coorparoo, Alderley, Carseldine, Lindum, Runcorn and Wacol the priorities

TOP PUBLIC TRANSPORT PRIORITIES – RAIL BACK ON TRACK

• To deliver the Brisbane Metro and overall bus network improvement
• Improve accessibility and walkability to transit hubs and other community activity centres
• Support the integrated fare system – no more select groups catching freebies
• Support the removal of level-crossings

TOP CYCLING PRIORITIES – SPACE FOR CYCLING BRISBANE

• CBD Minimum Grid to allow cyclists to ride in protected bike lanes to within 300m of your final destination — suggested streets for the grid include George St and Edward St, Herschel St definitely and then Ann St and Margaret St
• Protected bikeway at Sylvan Rd, Toowong, to connect the Centenary Bikeway to the Bicentennial Bikeway
• Protected bikeway at Vulture St, West End and South Brisbane
• Neighbourhood streets should have a speed limit of 30km per hour to improve cyclist and pedestrian safety