Ann Wason Moore: Stop throwing light rail under the electric bus

Time and again it’s been pitched as an alternative to the light rail. But this wacky idea could never work, writes Ann Wason Moore.

It’s time to stop throwing light rail under the bus.

The electric bus, that is.

Time and again electric buses have been pitched as a solution to the Gold Coast’s complex transportation problems.

While certainly these clean and green (but expensive) buses should be part of our metropolitan matrix, they are only a small aspect of the ultimate answer to the traffic, pollution and disconnection that threatens our city.

Opening morning of the Stage 2 of the Gold Coast light rail. The crowds wait as the light rail tram enters the station at Helensvale. Picture: Jerad Williams

Unfortunately, the suggestion that electric buses could pose an ideal alternative to the light rail is gaining traction … even though the idea is actually off the rails.

Larissa Rose, director of Gold Coast-based environmental consultancy company Glowing Green Australia and winner of the Mentors category of the 2020 Harvey Norman Gold Coast Bulletin Women of the Year, says anything other than a light rail route running down the Gold Coast Highway to the Gold Coast Airport simply will not work.

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“Building a future-proofed transportation matrix is essential for the Gold Coast. We need to get the job done and get it done properly,” Larissa says.

“Electric buses are great for smaller routes running east-west to connect light and heavy rail, but they are absolutely no substitution for a light rail route running down the spine of the coast.

Larissa Rose at the Celebratory lunch for the 2020 Harvey Norman Gold Coast Women of the Year winners in the Ocean View Room at The Island Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise. Picture: Jerad Williams

“They don’t have the capacity to carry large numbers of passengers, they add to the traffic on our roads … and why on earth would we have two transportation systems down the one route where people have to get off and change from rail to bus?”

It’s like the old proverb: don’t change horses midstream.

Imagine arriving at the airport, jumping on an electric bus to Burleigh and then switching to the light rail up to Broadbeach. No thanks. Surely it would be far easier to call an Uber or a taxi … and there goes any reduction to traffic or pollution.

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Yet in countless cities with functional public transportation, the sight of travellers on board a train with luggage in tow is completely common. It’s simple, it’s cheap and it’s heavily patronised.

And while you can fit hundreds of people on light rail – adding railcars as demand grows, buses are limited in passenger capacity … which would mean exorbitant wait times at these fanciful and farcical transportation transfer points.

Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 4 proposed routes.

The fact is we have invested in light rail, it’s here and it’s not going to stop only for another transportation system to pick up in its literal tracks.

Besides, the truth is that people just don’t like buses.

Ironically, an argument often proposed as evidence against the need for the light rail is the regular sight of empty buses lumbering up and down the highway, in particular the 777.

But actually, this just shows exactly why we need rail – if we want people out of their cars and on public transportation, we need anything but more buses.

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In fact, Curtin University Professor of Sustainability Peter Newman has based his career on advocating for the implementation of trains and trams over buses.

“I began my life as an activist academic in 1979 when the Western Australian government closed the Fremantle railway, saying buses would be better. Patronage immediately fell by 30 per cent and I ran a four-year campaign to save the railway. We won.

“I have been writing books and running campaigns ever since on why trains and trams are better than buses.

Professor Peter Newman, who heads Curtin University's Sustainability.

“Light rail has many success stories of competing with cars and attracting denser development (versus urban sprawl), so commentators like me do our best to make them policy-relevant.”

Yes, there are drawbacks to light rail – the cost and disruption of construction in particular – but these are short-term problems for a long-term solution.

And let’s not forget that electric buses are not exactly cheap either. Not only do they require their own infrastructure such as charging stations, but to provide the same passenger capacity as light rail we would need a ridiculous number.

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Yes, electric buses have their place – primarily in replacing diesel buses on established routes or in providing links between our two rail systems. And if you’re still not convinced, just please think of the children.

“To those people who don’t want the light rail, try to remember that it’s not all about you,” says Larissa.

“You might be okay with keeping more cars on the road and adding to pollution, but what about your children?

Professor Peter Newman, professor of sustainability at Curtin University.

“Young people want lower carbon transportation and cleaner solutions, and that’s what the light rail offers.

“You may not want it in your suburb, but our kids need it. It provides social connection, economic benefits and it’s a sustainable solution not just for our city but for the planet.”

In other words, we’re on the right track.