By Dave Riley
BRISBANE — In June 1990 there were 1.3 million people living in the Brisbane region. These residents in 1991 made 3.7 million trips by motor vehicle each day — an average of around three trips each. By the year 2011, it is estimated, the total number of journeys will almost double.
Brisbane is nowhere near the size of the southern capitals of Sydney and Melbourne. That is projected to change over the next 20 years, with the so-called "south-east Queensland metropolis" stretching from Noosa in the north to Tweed Heads in the south. At present 1000 people migrate to Queensland each week, mainly intent on settling in the south-east corner.
Branded "Mexicans" or "rust belt refugees" by the state government, which baulks at financing the infrastructure demanded by such growth, the newcomers have been fuelling the state economy, particularly in the housing and retail sectors. With the average price of a three-bedroom house in Brisbane currently $123,000 — compared to $142,000 in Melbourne and $183,000 in Sydney — the drift north is being fed by factors such as mortgages and jobs.
However, the city of Brisbane is likely to grow at a much slower rate than its surrounding shires. Home buyers seek the cheapest land and tend to make their purchases on the suburban fringes. The bulk of the residential growth is likely to be focused in the nearby shires of Pine Rivers to the north, Moreton to the west and Logan City to the south — all at some distance from the central business district. Presently, 290,000 vehicles enter the city each day.
While the Brisbane City Council has proclaimed the objective of having a bus or train stop within 800 metres of every home, such facilities, even if achieved, are unlikely to improve the situation.
Recent cuts forced on urban rail by the state government have reduced the number of peak hour services available to one third of Brisbane residents. The cuts also involved the closure of the urban Pinkemba line.
Studies by the conservative Australian Automobile Association indicate that a shift of less than 10% of peak hour car travellers to public transport would double the number of public transport journeys required to move them.
Cuts
However, the trend is in the opposite direction. In Brisbane in 1960, 40% of all personal travel was by public transport. In 1993, this had dropped to a mere 8%.
The BCC says it is committed to reducing dependence on the private car, and is well placed to act in that direction. Soon after the amalgamation of 26 local authorities in 1925 to form the Brisbane City Council, the new formation took over a local tram company. This generated the role council has had for the provision of bus and ferry public transport ever since.
Presently 574 buses and 5000 bus stops, including interchanges, cater to the local population. On average that is one 41-seat bus for every 2300 people. The service carries about 150,000 fares a day — about the same number as the suburban rail network.
Twenty years ago, the BCC had 576 buses serving a much smaller, more geographically concentrated population. Each BCC bus now carries 22% more passengers daily than a decade ago.
During the term of the current administration, 39 buses were purchased to replace units bought 25 years ago, and new services were introduced to Inala and Wynnum Manly. But a much larger expansion is immediately possible, says David Matters of the Public Transport Union: "With the new Mt Gravatt Bus Depot now in operation, the system could handle another 150 buses, requiring the further employment of 300-400 drivers with the capacity of 3000 extra runs per day".
Such possibilities would enthral any commuter now bussing it to work. A bus which seats 41 people often carries 75. In Brisbane's hot and humid summer weather, such productive packaging makes the family sedan seem much more appealing. Without air conditioning in a crowded bus, regular unrecycled breathing is possible only when the bus moves.
Instead of responding to these conditions with a massive capitalisation, the council's Labor administration in its 1993-94 budget settled on a handful of fare initiatives to entice the public to "bus it" on Sundays and within the CBD, concurrently increasing fares for the two zone trip. It also slashed its publicity campaign to encourage commuter use of public transport.
When not crowing about how well the service is being maintained — and bus patronage in Brisbane has actually risen slightly while the trend in other capitals shows a decline — the BCC complains about the low level of subsidy it receives from federal and state coffers.
As a public service, council buses and ferries are subsidised by Brisbane ratepayers to the tune of $26 million annually. The state government extends a further subsidy of 61 cents per bus passenger. In other centres this level is significantly higher: $2.48 in Canberra, $1.97 in Perth and Adelaide and $1.90 in Melbourne.
With the Goss government hell-bent on reducing public sector costs — as indicated by its recent rail and education cuts — it is unlikely that further money will be made available. In fact, indications are that the state government is keen to dismantle the BCC public transport service.
Private buses
The Goss government is thought to be considering legislation which would change the conditions for areas of operation of buses. Under such a new licensing system, the Public Transport Union believes that the Brisbane City Council would have to tender in order to operate its current routes. This deregulation would treat BCC bus operations as no different from those of any private operator.
When the Pinkemba rail line was closed recently, the replacement bus route went to tender. The PTU points out that in Victoria 80% of the publicly owned buses have been issued to private contractors. Legislation is being prepared in Western Australia for competitive and selective tendering.
Assistant secretary David Matters insists that the current service must be preserved. He thinks that it is unlikely that small local operators would be granted licences. The piecemeal break-up of the network — so that integration is lost — would advantage large corporations such as Westbus with its transnational links. Privatised routes would be run below capacity to milk subsidies and concessions while generating further profits through a hike in fares.
Lord Mayor Jim Soorley is also opposed to this step towards the privatisation of the council's public transport system.
The BCC buses and ferries are assets that could be developed. Already the network is being slowly integrated with urban rail through a reform of the ticketing system. However, inconvenient timetables, after dark safety and the prospect of walking at either end of the journey still foster a preference for the private car. This suggests that any change in the provision of public transport needs to be accompanied by a commitment to a much wider agenda if the our dependence on private motor vehicles is to be overcome.