Putting the brakes on public transport

USE of the Gold Coast’s public transport network has plummeted amid the coronavirus pandemic, but more people are walking and using the bike paths.

Transport Minister Mark Bailey says passenger numbers have dropped by up to 80 per cent across the region, mainly because of strict rules around non-essential travel.

“That’s in line with what we’ve seen across the rest of Southeast Queensland and is what we expected, based on the tightening of rules around social activities, and people working from home where possible,” he said.

Service timetables were running as normal to ensure people could continue to get to work and access medical appointments, or travel for other essential reasons, Mr Bailey said.

Gold Coast roads have seen a big drop in the number of vehicles as people stay local and avoid non-essential travel.

“In mid-April we saw an almost 40 per cent decline in weekday traffic volumes compared to the same time last year, and that rebounded slightly to about a 30 per cent drop in the past week,’’ Mr Bailey said.

“There’s no evidence to suggest more people are choosing to drive over catching public transport right now, but we will continue to monitor trends as events unfold.”

He said people had reason to be confident in the “enhanced cleaning and social distancing measures in place on public transport”.

“Since mid-March, cleaning of buses, trains, trams and ferries has ramped up,” he said. “We’ve also moved to cashless ticketing across the public transport network in southeast Queensland.

“We will keep these measures in place for the time being so commuters can be confident that their safety is being prioritised.”

He said it was up to commuters to prioritise their safety and that of other passengers by following social distancing rules, not using public transport if they felt unwell and “doing the things we’ve all been talking about now for months’’.

A Gold Coast City Council spokeswoman said it would work with the State Government to get people back on to public transport when safe to do so.

The spokeswoman said pedestrian and cyclist numbers on some parts of the footpath and bike path network had more than doubled compared to previous years.

IN MID-APRIL WE SAW AN ALMOST 40 PER CENT DECLINE IN WEEKDAY TRAFFIC VOLUMES …

MINISTER MARK BAILEY