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Public transportation trips are up 19% compared to the same time last year. 50¢ fares have been a significant factor in this resurgence. They have acted as a key piece of cost-of-living relief and a way to help solve Brisbane’s growing traffic congestion problems.
A recent study by INRIX Global compared cities around the world in relation to the amount of time that was lost to traffic congestion. They found that Brisbane had lost, on average, 74 hours a year due to traffic delays. This would make Brisbane the 12th worst city in terms of congestion globally.
There are calls from experts in traffic policy that call for Brisbane roads to be upgraded and for bottlenecks to be fixed. However, there is only so far that a city can expand its roadways outwards, and it is estimated that Queensland will spend over $37.4 billion on road projects over the next four years.
While investment in Queensland’s roads network will always be necessary, induced demand will eat up the benefits gained from these major road projects. Induced demand is when an increase in something means that more of that thing will be used or consumed. In this case, the thing that will be used is roads, therefore creating more traffic problems for the Brisbane area.
Public transportation needs to be prioritised as the way forward to solving Brisbane’s traffic congestion problems.
For students, the opportunity of owning a car and operating it is a cost that is increasingly out of reach. With petrol prices over $2 per litre in most metropolitan areas, and insurance premiums being pushed ever upwards, it is not an affordable option for students. Therefore, having a robust and cheap public transportation network is highly important to the students at UQ.
Most frequent evening services, increased services on UQ bus lines during peak hours in the morning and evening, dedicated transit lanes for public transport, priority signalling (automatic green light for buses when going through lights), and a continued commitment for 50¢ or even free fares is what UQ students need to continue moving away from a car-centric means of transportation. This will help ease congestion city-wide and provide continued cost-of-living support.
Written by Samuel Wong
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