Costly commute drives motorist to city digs

The daily commute, from home in Ipswich to work in inner-city Brisbane, has taken its toll on Diana Nyari.

The financial and emotional cost of daily commuting from her Ipswich home to work in inner Brisbane has taken a toll on Diana Nyari. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

The daily commute from home in Ipswich to work in inner Brisbane has taken its toll on Diana Nyari.

Some of that impact is financial — road tolls for the Legacy Way tunnel might add $50 a week to her budget, fuel costs for her Mazda 3 sedan may be another $80, not accounting for wear and tear — but some things are harder to quantify, and Ms Nyari, a receptionist and student, does not want the daily commute affecting her performance. That is why, yesterday, she was relieved to secure a rental apartment at Yeronga, closer to the city.

How commuting has changed in australia

“I probably won’t even drive to work any more, I might just catch the train,” she said of her new home being closer to a station. “That’s the reason I’m moving; I’m just exhausted from getting up early, driving so far, spending so much time in the car and so much money on it.”

Since December, Ms Nyari has been on the road by 6.30am every weekday for what is often a one-hour drive. In the afternoon peak, travel times can blow out without warning.

Rebecca Michael, head of public policy at peak motoring body RACQ, yesterday said Brisbane’s traffic peak was getting longer, with congestion at 6am-9am and 4pm-7pm.

The government yesterday said it would restore 430 weekly train services across the network to partially make up for those lost after a line was opened to Redcliffe in 2016 without the extra drivers needed.

Last month’s state budget set aside $23 billion for road, rail and transport infrastructure across Queensland.