‘Boom gate hell’: Gridlock fears as level crossings to remain despite more trains under Cross River Rail
A blueprint for the future rail network has triggered fears of road gridlock at boom gates when more frequent train services start under Cross River Rail. LIST: 18 BOOM GATE HELL SPOTS
Logan
Don't miss out on the headlines from Logan. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A blueprint for the future rail network has triggered fears of road gridlock at boom gates when more frequent train services start under Cross River Rail.
Under state government plans, boom gates at five level crossings will be removed after 2025 and planning is ongoing for a further four with no planning yet for at least nine level crossings.
The finding, made in the 17-page SEQ Rail Connect, which details new and upgraded stations, plans for park n rides, laying new track, implementing new ticketing and signalling equipment and manufacturing new trains.
But the document also reveals there are no plans to remove level crossings at crucial snarl points on Brisbane’s roads until after 2030.
Shadow Transport Minister Steve Minnikin said failure to remove the level crossings would create a “boom gate hell”.
He said the worst jam points were at Cavendish Rd, Coorparoo where state government data showed boom gates were down 1 hour 32min and 42 seconds over a five-hour period including morning peak, on an average week day.
Boom gates at Warrigal Rd, Eight Mile Plains, were down for 1hr 26 mins with Sherwood Rd, Florence St, South Pine Rd at Alderley and Dawson Pde, other snap points.
Mr Minnikin said the $5.4 billion Cross River Rail project would not be the much-publicised road congestion buster the state was promoting and called for a fast-track plan to remove all level crossings.
“A five-year time lag to take out these level crossings is just going to take the pain off the train and cause gridlock on the roads,” he said.
“We have traffic congestion building up now and that is only going to worsen when boom gates are down longer when trains run more frequently.
“It’s like removing these crossings is a second thought when it should have been a key component for Cross River Rail to work for the city as a whole especially during the Olympics.
“I am not against Cross River Rail but I have criticised the project cost blow out from $5.4 billion to $8 billion and the 18-month delay and the poor planning around level crossings.”
Transport Minister Mark Bailey was unable to reveal how much extra time boom gates would be kept down with the extra Cross River Rail trains.
He said five level crossings in the 20km section of the rail line, between Kuraby and Beenleigh, would be removed as part of the Logan and Gold Coast Faster Rail project, which was still in the planning phase but no date has been set for their removal.
“SEQ Rail Connect, in and of itself will, therefore, make no changes in the boom arm down-time experienced on the road network,” Mr Bailey said.
“A number of factors influence boom arm down-time at road rail interfaces including rail signalling, the number of trains passing through the crossing, for example, peak, and contra-peak services running together, the stopping patterns of services, express or all stops, the proximity of the level crossing to the train station, and the length of the train.
“As timetables for the opening of Cross River Rail are still in development, it is therefore not currently possible to estimate expected boom gate down time at specified locations on the network.”
A Transport Department spokesman said planning for removal of level crossings at Beams Rd, Carseldine; Boundary Rd, Coopers Plains; Kianawah Rd, Wynnum West and at Lindum Station was under way.
Investigations had started into ways to improve the level crossing on Royal Parade East at Banyo station and $1.5 million was set aside for the Coorparoo Level Crossing Precinct Study.
The spokesman said factors influencing boom gate down time included rail signalling, the number of trains passing through the crossing, the stopping patterns of services (express or all stops), the proximity of the level crossing to the train station, and the length of a train.
“Timetables for the opening of Cross River Rail are still in development and therefore it is not possible to estimate expected boom gate down time at specified locations on the network at this time,” the spokesman said.
“The opening of Cross River Rail is still three years away and the timetable will be released closer to that time.”
Transport advocate Rail Back on Track spokesman Robert Dow said the Cross River Rail project was not guaranteed to provide quicker journeys or increase train services.
He said all level crossings would need to be removed before the new network opened and the Cleveland and Shorncliffe lines both needed to be duplicated.
“Without that work done before Cross River Rail opens the network will struggle to add more trains and the road system will not cope,” Mr Dow said.
“Already level crossings at places such as Coorparoo are down for more than 20 minutes in an hour at certain times of a day and this can only get worse when there are more trains running.”
More Coverage
Originally published as ‘Boom gate hell’: Gridlock fears as level crossings to remain despite more trains under Cross River Rail
Brave mum lifts shirt to share breast cancer battle scar
A Redland Bay mum is helping to remove the stigma around breast removal surgery and has lifted her shirt to bare a 10cm scar from a lifesaving operation after a breast cancer diagnosis.
From courtroom to cabaret: Logan lawyer takes to stage as Billy Joel
By day he’s a mild-mannered lawyer but next week, Logan’s William Boyd will take the cabaret world by storm as piano man Billy Joel in a Footlight Theatre’s latest production.