Media release Tues 13 Mar

More buses for UQ St Lucia

Community Action for Sustainable Transport (CAST) are urging TransLink to increase the number of bus services to the University of Queensland (UQ) campus at St Lucia.

15000 people catch the bus to UQ each morning and half of these people use routes 109, 169 and 209 via the Eleanor Schonell Bridge.

In response to huge demand TransLink have added just one more service to each of these routes.

“They’ve only added an additional 120 seats to deal with overcrowding on a route that carries more than 7000 people each morning,” said CAST spokesperson Tristan Peach.

“Public transport users deserve better than this. We think an additional 30 services would be far more appropriate,” said Mr Peach.

These additional services could be on existing routes and there is also a possibility of introducing a feeder bus linking Dutton Park Railway Station to UQ via the Schonell Bridge.

CAST have also suggested that Route 209, which travels along Old Cleveland Road from Carindale should be given priority at traffic lights to reduce travel times for public transport users.

“Increasing the capacity and reducing travel times on these routes will reward existing public transport users, and entice others to get out of their cars and onto the bus,” said Mr Peach.

CAST believe if Translink can get this right then there may not be a need for Brisbane City Council to build the controversial Hale Street Bridge.