So, 302 buses to the city depart Fison Ave at 4:15 and 4:20 pm.
Sometimes, the bus for the 4:15 service is late, but the 4:20 one is already here. It stops at Stop 43B, which is only used in the AM.
I’m curious if there’s any reason TfB can’t swap the runs of these 2 buses, so they don’t spend their entire journey leapfrogging each other.
I wonder if it’s feasible to launch a TLOD service on Macleay.
Bribie already has one
If you live on one of the SMB Islands, you really do get what you pay for unfortunately - cheaper land, substantially less basic civic services.
The issue as always is cost. The on-demand services are a LOT more expensive to run than fixed route services. People seem to think the opposite.
RCC rates (at least some time previously) included a component that was used to subsidise the SMBI ferry services and allow them to be brought into the go card system. I don’t believe RCC rates have ever been used to fund bus services. These being the case, it is a bit rich for anybody out there to complain that their rates entitle them to anything more than they already have.
(I’m not sure what the situation is now - either RCC is still tipping funds in and the State is paying more on top of that and what it previously paid in order to cover 50c fares, or RCC is no longer funding anything.)
AFAIK - speaking as a resident of RCC - council doesn’t have a hand in the bus or train services and they’re operated by Transdev under contract from Translink. Don’t know the situation with the ferry.
I think with the rates = we are owed services comes from the idea that BCC pays for buses in their rates, so it’s assumed that we do too.
And as for the feasibility to get a bus service - Transdev only has a small depot in Capalaba, with some services being done by neighboring LGA bus services. The only island bus service in the region on Stradbroke is done by a different company to Transdev (formerly Q-connect IIRC) and is not under the Go-Card network. Buses are also stored on Stradbroke as well.
TL:DR - for a Macleay Island service to happen there’d need to be a singular bus stored on Macleay Island and to maintain it they’d have to ship it to Capalaba, which costs high $$$ for low $$$ in return. Staff would also have to commute via ferry daily to operate the service. It’d cost too much to get a bus there, to maintain, for low return
Routes 880 and 881 are operated by Transit Systems under translink’s oversight.
I guess the question that should be asked is just how large a vehicle and what route/frequency would be required? Would a HiAce doing a few hourly trips (similar to the Lamb Island courtesy bus) suffice?
Surely running something like that could be done relatively cheaply?
Not making any comment on whether or not the service should be run, but always bear in mind that the primary cost of any bus service is the driver, so a HiAce doesn’t actually save much money compared to a full size bus, and having a single bus without the economies of scale of a depot may make it more expensive.
I will say that while I would never, ever live on one of the islands - if I absolutely had to, my first preference would be Coochie, then Karragarra or Lamb, then Macleay, then Russell (and in the case of the last 2 no more than 1.5km from the ferry). If you are not walkable to the ferry, you are buying yourself disappointment. Even driving, you end up like the households where one car lives on the island and the other lives at Weinam Creek and is at risk of theft, damage, general exposure to the elements etc.
The others are not in contention at all given the fares, schedules and distances.
Ever since the the route 385 got changed to queen street i’ve anectdotally noticed how unreliable it has become. However i’ve just looked at the actual timetables and they are stat padding their on time running performance beyond belief and shows why my bus can never get to roma street on time but nothing is ever done about it. They have timetables the roma street to queen street section between 10 and 12 minutes depending on the run. Outboudn this is timetabled as 2 minutes but really should be 3 minutes.
Are there any other routes which just do dumb crap like this to improve their on paper on time running.
Sadly it’s very common as I understand the way TransLink calculates on time performance rewards it.
I wrote up a bit about it for the last Policy Day: https://forum.bettertransportqueensland.org/t/policy-platform-proposal-reflective-timetables-between-all-stops/1588
New driver restrooms are being installed at the Forest Lake Shops bus stop, and are set to be completed in a few weeks.
Im still not sure what the point of these extra toilets is, because there are already driver EOT facilities like 20m away.
I think a big reason has to do with the fact that the mens and womens restrooms aren’t separated/partitioned. And the newer one is noticeably bigger.
I just want Translink to install an e-ink PID at the terminus. Its beyond me why they only did the Forest Lake Bvd bus stop (yes, because of the two high schools). I’d rather it being relocated to the terminus (or install a completely new one) as its the most patronaged by school students, retirees, and commuters.
Translink seemingly has also given up on investigating an e-ink for either Richlands, Inala, Doollandella, Heathwood, Acacia Ridge, and Pallara as well. Its a pity, because these e-inks could be very valuable to locals.
The wheels are Translink seem to come off as of late.
No news, no real projects, no online presence. Annoying
It’s outside the largest shopping centre in the area, and an interchange point for buses travelling to Brisbane, Logan and Springfield/Ipswich, including the 100 bus route (one of the highest patroned BCC routes). An obvious choice for an e-ink.
Locations with multiple bus routes, particularly bus routes that run infrequently (i.e. half hourly or less) should be prioritised for e-ink PIDs.
The Beaudesert Line will likely be operational by the 2050s, in which case it’ll be too late for the elderly residents in Flagstone, socially isolated and removed from society due to prevailing health conditions and having poor public transport access. And not to forget all of Flagstone’s young demographic - children, teens, young adults - whom can’t go anywhere, unless if mum or dad becomes their full-time chauffeur.
The short-term solution ought to be a mix of the following in my opinion:
*all bus routes mentioned will ideally run from 5am to 11pm.
