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| CRR is heading towards being a disaster |
"Destructive" LNP Track Record:
- The Newman Government axed the well designed original Cross River Rail (CRR), for the ludicrous BaT Tunnel, which added the network bottlenecks that persist with the current Cross River Rail design (such as shortening
the Southern portal from Yeerongpilly to Dutton Park). - Gave up trying to make Brisbane's Bus Network more efficient.
- Ordered the New Generation Rollingstock (NGR) trains without guard positions, and toilets that did not meet disability legislation, resulting in a delay in entry to service, and expensive rectification work. It is likely that there was a "secret" plan to privatise NGR operated train services.
- Did not order enough NGR trains to optmise the existing rail network.
- Axed driver trainers, and froze driver recruitment, when services were planned to be increased, resulting in Rail Fail. Likely also part of the "stealth" privatisation plan.
- Very limited new rail policies announced so far, and lacking public transport vision.
"Incompetent" ALP Track Record
- Painfully slow response to fixing issues caused by the LNP Newman Government including Rail Fail, NGR design flaws.
- Resurrected CRR, but with serious flaws in how it connects to rest of the network.
- Severe lack of transparency surrounding CRR, notably the "hidden" Rail Operations Plan.
- Involved in political fights that removed the underground Cultural Centre station from Brisbane City Council's Brisbane Metro.
- Failed to order more NGR trains.
- Lack of action on CRR associated infrastructure projects such as Beenleigh and Cleveland Line enhancements.
- Limited new rail policies announced so far, and lacking public transport vision.
Sydney, Melbourne, and Auckland are also building new rail tunnels, with easily available information on how it will improve train services. Unfortunately, in Brisbane, the ALP Palaszczuk government are trying to keep voters in the dark over the severe design flaws of CRR, missing rail operations plans, whether Dutton Park station will be axed, and staging of infrastructure required to support CRR. The LNP led by Deb Frecklington, appear to be cut from the same cloth as the Newman government, so expect another attempt to privatise Queensland Rail by stealth, and road centric policies. It's not looking good for Queensland.
Nobody is promising what needs to be done:
ReplyDelete-convert the so-called Brisbane Metro into Light Rail, but throw in potentially the Doomben (and on to Hamilton Waterfront) and even Ferny Grove lines which are hardly worth the trouble
-new HSR from Coolangatta (and potentially Byron Bay) to Noosa with very few stops, say Yatala for an interchange with the existing line, and downgrade the current lines to regional operations. For example, the current Nambour line could be just a three-car, or even purpose-built 2 car operation north of Cab and connecting onto larger suburban trains. Ditto at Yatala or Beenleigh.
-Stop favouring SEQ exclusively. This regional model could also work in Cairns, Townsville, Mackay and Rocky (including a permanent service to Gladstone) and the Maryborough Hervey Bay operation reinstated (narrow gauge, but pending eventual standard gauge HS extension)
-proper proposal for Toowoomba which could include a tilting diesel train on the standard gauge or just build to Helidon or Withcott and put in a big park and ride and dedicated shuttle buses
-Brisbane itself should stop this rubbish of expanding the 1067mm but instead come up with a full blown metro to take pressure off the crucial Toowong/UQ-City-Airport-City-Buranda axis. Really the money for this could have come from all the money that has been wasted on busways, tollways and now the Bus Metro.