Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 4: City to sign off on $5m study to fast forward trams to Coolangatta
Light rail stage 4 through Palm Beach to the border will be fast-tracked with a major cash injection to sign off to get it built as soon as possible.
Gold Coast
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Light rail stage four to the Gold Coast Airport is to be fast-tracked with city council stumping up $5 million for more investigations and to sign off on a State Government partnership.
City councillors have ticked off on the ratepayer spend to cover planning and environmental issues, along with land resumptions on the Burleigh-to-Coolangatta coastal route.
City council CEO Tim Baker has been directed to sign off with the State Government on a memorandum of understanding.
Sources suggest the preliminary business case can be completed in two to three months, which would be followed by a more detailed study costing about $10m.
Mayor Tom Tate told the Bulletin: “It is crucial, with Light Rail Stage 3 currently under construction (to Burleigh), that we move forward with the detailed planning for Light Rail Stage 4. There was a five-year gap between completion of Stage 2 and commencement of Stage 3 and we cannot afford that to be repeated between Stages 3 and 4.
“Council’s financial position is strong, and we are ready to commit to our $5m share of the detailed planning, and also, as per my Mayoral Minute of October 2022, to commit to construction of the bridges across Tallebudgera and Currumbin Creeks as part of our 11 per cent commitment to the overall project.
“As a civil engineer I know the bridges across Currumbin and Tallebudgera Creeks are on the critical path and if we can get them brought forward it will shave many months off overall project delivery. With ever escalating construction and labour costs, it is financially prudent to get this going now.”
Southern Coast community groups this month united in their fight against trams, backing heavy rail to the border as their preferred public transport option.
In a statement provided exclusively to the Bulletin, they said: “Finish heavy rail to the Gold Coast Airport as the priority.”
But some residents have reached out to the Bulletin since providing photographs of pro-tram stickers around Coolangatta, Kirra and Tugun, claiming they show most residents want light rail to the border.
“There is huge support for the light rail all the way to Cooly. The silent majority are just trusting our leaders to lead and ignore the small vocal minority and their ridiculous arguments,” a resident said.
Mayor Tate believes it must be progressed quickly to avoid cost blowouts and benefit from keeping the workforce on light rail Stage three from Broadbeach to Burleigh.
“I am satisfied with the early progress of Stage 4 with significant work continuing on the preliminary business case but there is no time to lose. My council is committed to working constructively with Minister (Mark) Bailey and his Department as we have done at all times,” he said.
A department of Transport and Main Roads spokesman said a preliminary business case planning the Stage 4 (GCLR4) extension has been underway since 2020.
He said community consultation on stage 4 was being finalised for release mid-year.
“The preliminary business case addresses community feedback on the concept designs, conducts a preliminary evaluation of costs, risks and benefits associated with project options, and shortlists the project options through numerous multiple criteria to determine a preferred option,” he said.
“Should funding be committed, the next stage will be detailed planning, which will include further investigations to refine the designs based on community and specialist feedback.”
Originally published as Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 4: City to sign off on $5m study to fast forward trams to Coolangatta
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