BUS-TED: Route overload
Theme parks, deputy mayor crying out for transport fixes in north
A northern Gold Coast bus route is only marginally behind the Broadbeach to airport run as the second busiest in the city.
But while there are plans to replace the 777 airport bus with light rail, not so much as a bus lane is envisioned to aid the heavily patronised TX7 bus traffic in the north.
Analysis by the Bulletin of Gocard passenger data showed heavy demand for the TX7 bus, which runs from the light rail terminus at Helensvale station to theme parks Wet’n’wild, Movie World and Dreamworld, where it regularly gets stuck in heavy traffic.
“It (the bus) gets caught up,” Dreamworld CEO Greg Yong said.
“It’s this ongoing challenge that’s around here, the east west challenge of getting people around the M1, particularly during school pick-up and drop-off. It’s really challenging.
“Our view is very strongly that, particularly with the Coomera Connector coming online and Foxwell Rd being so busy, anything that can be done to try to get better connectivity east and west is crucial to the overall story.”
Mr Yong said the bus service, which is heavily patronised by tourists, was “critical” to the theme parks.
“The bus service that runs out of Helensvale is one of the busiest, if not the busiest, on the Gold Coast,” he said.
“We have hundreds every day coming on that. At Christmas time it would be thousands.”
Mr Yong said that as well as transferring from the light rail to the TX7 service at Helensvale, a “significant” number of people were reaching Dreamworld by taking the train to Coomera station. From there they caught a bus or Uber. However some elect to beat the traffic by walking the 1.9km to the theme park’s entrance.
Mr Yong’s comments echo calls by Village Roadshow Theme Parks chief operating officer Bikash Randhawa in November that greater public transport connectivity was needed to support northern Gold Coast theme parks.
Mr Randhawa said that in an ideal world he would love to see the light rail, which terminates just short of Movie World, extended to the theme parks.
“We’ve got to make sure that visitors are not spending a lot of time on the road. They’re spending more time at attractions, at restaurants, at facilities,” Mr Randhawa said.
“The congestion and the issues we are seeing with traffic is a huge concern.
“I think the G:link is fabulous, it’s taken a bit of pressure (off), but it needs to expand and connect to more areas in my opinion.”
The frequency of some northern Gold Coast bus services has increased recently following lobbying of the state from council.
A new route has also been introduced going from Coomera to Pimpama City via the
Pimpama Sports Hub.
However Deputy Mayor Donna Gates, whose Division 3 electorate is centred on Coomera, said there were currently no plans for bus lanes or other major public transport infrastructure in the northern Gold Coast.
With some experts suggesting the population of the northern Gold Coast could surge by as much as 75 per cent by 2043, Cr Gates said more needed to be done.
“They (state government) are working cooperatively with council officers and for that I’m grateful because there is no doubt that with Costco, Westfield Coomera, three hospitals, potentially 4000 new dwellings north of Westfield, and the Coomera Connector landing at Shipper Drive, we need all the help we can get,” Cr Gates said.
“If we can get more people
off the road and into public transport, quite clearly, that’s a major win.”
Cr Gates said she got “constant complaints” about heavy congestion at a roundabout that serves both an M1 onramp and the entrance to Dreamworld.
“I really urge the state as part of their improvements that must be developed for when the Coomera Connector lands there in 2027 to address Whitewater Way and that ramping that is occurring from Whitewater Way back down towards Creek St,” she said.
Despite the surging population and well-known congestion issues, the northern Gold Coast does not feature prominently in public transport infrastructure plans for the city.
Plans for the light rail see it being extended from Broadbeach to Gold Coast Airport in Coolangatta, with the Burleigh leg of that extension currently under construction.
Planned rapid bus network lines will serve Nerang and Robina.
There are no new routes planned for the northern Gold Coast, with new stations at Pimpama and Hope Island on the existing heavy rail line the only investments of any significance.
Theodore MP Mark Boothman said that was not only bad news for tourists trying to exercise theme parks, but meant a lack of independence for many elderly residents.
“There has been much discussion about encouraging property owners to build detached granny flats or shared accommodation to help with the cost of living and housing crisis, yet the State Government fails to deliver the most basic public transports in many areas across the Gold Coast,” Mr Boothman said.
“Due to the spiralling cost of living crisis, many residents – for financial reasons – live with other family members to share the burden. It isn’t uncommon to see elderly parents move into their children’s homes for economic reasons.
“Yet many areas where it is appropriate to build detached houses or share accommodation have no access to any form of public transport, therefore forcing many residents to lose their independence.”
On Tuesday Mayor Tom Tate said the council was reviewing its transport infrastructure plan, which was created in 2013 and projected until 2031.
“We are looking at where people have moved to.”
There is no doubt that with Costco, Westfield Coomera, three hospitals, potentially 4000 new dwellings north of Westfield, and the Coomera Connector landing at Shipper Drive, we need all the help we can get
Cr Donna Gates