Gold Coast traffic: Fears of ‘insane bottleneck’ on roads if public transport and light rail are not solved

The Gold Coast has been warned it will become an “insane bottleneck” if the tourism capital does not fix its transport issues. HOW TO SOLVE IT

The Gold Coast will become an “insane bottleneck” if the tourism capital does not fix its transport issues, leading demographer Simon Kuestenmacher says.

The future of public transport is up in the air, with no concrete plan for how to deal with looming gridlock resulting from the population growing by more than 15,000 people annually.

As it stands, civic leaders say it is critical the coastal stretch of the light rail is completed, as well as east-west bus connections, plus the second stage of the Coomera Connector.

But with the light rail extension to the border under review and no planning or funding locked in for other projects, Gold Coasters are in limbo and awaiting urgent decisions by all three levels of government on major bottleneck and congestion busters.

Traffic Gridlock M1 as seen from Smith St overpass. Picture: Mike Batterham.

Mr Kuestenmacher said it was critical short-term budget considerations were put aside to ensure the Gold Coast was not crippled long-term by economically damaging congestion.

“Let’s say you stop building infrastructure, you will have insane bottlenecks in this whole beast that is Southeast Queensland,” he said.

“Those bottlenecks will limit labor mobility, they will limit people moving around, it slows growth, it slows business opportunities, it makes people hate the area because they just talk negatively about the traffic. It’s just terrible.

“This means that people want to work from home more in order to avoid the increasingly soul-destroying commute that slows down the whole efficiency of the CBD in its own right. This is negative stuff that would make it worse than it should be.

Simon Kuestenmacher. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

“It’ll still work, people will still be alive and do stuff, the sun will rise in the morning, but ultimately it is much, much worse than what it could be.”

The future of the 13km stage 4 extension of the light rail from Burleigh Heads to the border via Gold Coast Airport remains up in the air, with the state government reviewing the project.

The stage four business case requires $15m and whether the state retained provision for it was described as a “litmus test” by Mayor Tom Tate. The $15m was “quarantined” in June’s state budget while the project remains under review, awaiting a decision by the Crisafulli Government after a round of consultation on transport options south.

Artist impression of the proposed Gold Coast east-west bus system, known as the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)

Council continues its planning for east-west rapid bus connections linking the light rail stations at Burleigh and Broadbeach on the coastal strip to Nerang railway station via Carrara, and to Robina.

Deputy Mayor and city planning boss Mark Hammel said the Gold Coast needs both light rail and the east-west bus links to ensure it does not get hit with gridlock as its population grows.

“We’ve spent a decade talking about and building the light rail – but we’re not talking nearly enough about east-west public transport links,” he said.

City Planning chair and Deputy Mayor Cr Mark Hammel. Picture Glenn Hampson

“If we’re serious about connecting our growing communities, it’s time to also focus on these.

“Planning for the Gold Coast’s future without clear public transport corridors is like putting the cart before the horse – or more literally, building homes before the bus or tram even arrives at the station.

“As we look ahead, we need to shift the conversation beyond just light rail and focus on the full transport network – one that connects people, communities, schools, jobs and opportunity across the entire city.

“The light rail can’t carry the city alone. To drive growth and reduce congestion, we must commit to dedicated east-west public transport corridors. Light rail is not enough – rapid bus links are also essential to delivering our new City Plan.”

In the city’s north, planning continues for the future stages of the Coomera Connector but there is no funding or timeline for its eventual delivery.

It comes as the first sections of the arterial road are set to open by the end of the year.

The Coomera Connector is planned as a six-lane, 45km arterial road to run from Nerang to Logan.

The first stage of the project will run from Nerang-Broadbeach Road at Carrara to Shipper Drive, Coomera.

The business case for Stage 2 – from Logan to Coomera – has been completed but did not get any funding in this year’s state budget.

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