A discussion thread for BRT and Trackless tram technology development.
Northwest T-Way (Sydney, NSW)
Australian National Construction Major Project Review Magazine (2008)
Leighton Contractors
URL: https://ancr.com.au/Northwest_T_Way.pdf
This feature article by Leighton Contractors on the Northwest T-Way appeared in the Australian National Construction Review Magazine.
Overall the project consisted of 24 km
- 21 km of exclusive Priority A busway
- 3 km of bus lanes
- 30 bus stations
- 2 P&R with 400 car spaces (in total)
- Seven new bridges and three underpasses
- 3m wide shared pedestrian path and cycle way was built along the entire length
of the T-way.
Cost was about $542 million for 24 km and 30 stops/stations, or 22 million/km (2004 dollars). In today’s dollars about $36.3 million/km.
In December 2004 the NSW Roads and Traffic Authority (NSW RTA) awarded Leighton Contractors the contract to design, construct and maintain a $524 million transit way development for a rapid bus service linking Parramatta, Blacktown and Rouse Hill.
The North-West T-way, or T-way, would link existing bus and rail networks, including the recently completed Paramatta-Liverpool T-way. Former NSW Premier Bob Carr envisaged the T-way would provide Sydney’s North West residents with increased access to “jobs, health, education and leisure facilities”, reduced travelling times and reduced car congestion on existing roads.
Northwest_T_Way.pdf (1.2 MB)
HESS AG Brisbane Metro BRT Case Study and Vehicle Specifications
Interesting that the vehicle is already in use in 12 EU cities, and I would imagine in mixed traffic corridors. The bus also has preconditioning, working out the weather forecast and differences in temperatures inside and outside the bus so that when the driver starts it in the morning, the interior is already a comfortable temperature.
Video of the buses (HESS LighTram 25) in Basel, Switzerland. Running on normal mixed traffic roads to and from the Airport.
Notes
HESS AG website and reference
https://www.hess-ag.ch/contact/hess-australia.html?L=1
Case Study - Brisbane
The race to gold Brisbane’s Games Transport Legacy
Brisbane City Council (2024)
URL: The race to gold - Brisbane's Games transport legacy | Brisbane City Council
This document describes the current strategy
Our current public transport system can only serve about 50 per cent of projected trips to and from the Games venues [6]. In its current state, it is not Games-ready.
The deadline to plan and deliver major heavy and light rail projects for Brisbane in time for the Games has expired. With just 8 years to go, we must focus on high impact, lower cost projects that can be delivered for the long-term benefit of Brisbane in the time that remains.
(Page 14)
The report claims that Brisbane’s citywide PT network cannot handle the high loadings that it will experience with the Olympics, and that new infrastructure based on rail (other than Cross River Rail) will not be in place in time to handle it.
There is probably an opportunity to expand the train fleet in time for this date with more trains, and timetable changes to support improved off-peak frequency but the window to do this is small. The current plans are 65 x 6-car trains.
The plans also show Brisbane Metro BRT expanding to the Northside, Southside and Eastside of Brisbane but the Westside of Brisbane has been excluded in the current plans (with the exception of a short section into UQ Lakes).
Overall, there does need to be a single state-level plan that incorporates BCC’s plans along with the rail network. With transport responsibilities spread across four different organisations - QR, BCC, TMR and the Olympics Delivery Authority, co-ordination across these might be a challenge.
City of Stirling Trackless Tram Trial
The City of Stirling LGA has recently had its October council meeting and published a report on its ‘Trackless Tram’ trial.
Quote from: City of StirlingTo ensure safety and avoid road closures, the City conducted the Trial in its Administration Centre car park. A map of the Trackless Tram route is found below. A digital rail track with more than 400 sensors was installed in the road surface to guide the tram through the route and a replica station was constructed to ensure safe entry on and off the tram.
As a result of the trial, a second testing will be sought to trial the tram on Scarborough Beach road in mixed traffic.
Following the extensive testing during the Trackless Tram Trial, the City of Stirling has received ‘In Principle’ approval by Main Roads Western Australia to conduct an on-road trial of a Trackless Tram on Scarborough Beach Road. This trial, subject to several conditions, offers a unique opportunity to evaluate the technology in a real-world setting before implementing this public transport solution.
Overall, the public seemed to like the ride quality.
Overall I found the report a little sparse, and there did not seem to be any discussion about the concern of road rutting.
Report Excerpt