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Connect the entire light rail, and heavy rail,
network in time for the 2032 Olympics
Dual Gauge rail tracks will accommodate Light Rail now and Heavy Rail in the future.
Current Government admits the time-frame to deliver Heavy Rail from Varsity to the Gold Coast airport and/or Coolangatta is at least 20 years, and could be decades more.
WHY SO LONG? Population, now and projected 20 years forward indicates the demand would fail to justify the $billions it requires (at least double Light Rail). If it’s a government protected rail route why not utilise the location, existing infrastructure of the M1 and give Light Rail immediate access?
Let’s consider the options…
Option 1 Extend Heavy rail from Varsity to Bermuda Street, or West Burleigh. Why? Sending Light Rail west from Burleigh Heads enables seamless connection at either of these two locations. Light Rail can then continue, at a much faster speed (no pedestrians, no intersections, no red lights) along the M1 Heavy Rail corridor all the way to the airport and/or Stewarts Road.
This section (approx. 4km) can be built as Heavy Rail track with dual gauge, e.g., 3’6” and 4’8” therefore it can be utilised by Light Rail now and in 20 to 30 or more years in the future, it can accommodate Heavy Rail if or when Heavy Rail to the airport may be viable. Doesn't that make sense? The benefits to the Gold Coast will be huge, both economically and environmentally.
Dual Gauge is currently undergoing approval elsewhere in Queensland. Adapting M1 corridor to dual gauge allows the corridor to be preserved for heavy rail, allowing light rail access in the meantime. Also, it would be significantly cheaper and pick up all the heavy rail and light rail stations between Brisbane and the Gold Coast airport (see Rail Network Plan diagram below #3).
This increases the parking capacity for residents to travel to work anywhere along both the Light Rail and the Heavy Rail route.
Dual gauge would have the ability to connect the entire light rail and heavy rail network between Brisbane, Gold Coast Airport and Coolangatta.
Light Rail now, Heavy Rail in the future.
Moves more people more places • Much better car parking options
and no doubling up for Light Rail elsewhere • Faster
• Seamless transfer from one mode to another.
Cost ratepayers and taxpayers far less and delivers a better solution.
Bermuda Street Station Route
West Burleigh Station Route
Heavy and Light Rail Network
Option 2 Heavy Rail to the airport has considerable challenges, financially due to the extensive engineering and construction demands. Key structures include…
1. two 3.3km viaducts
2. 4 overpasses
3. 2 underpasses
4. a landmark two 105 metre span twin steel arch bridges
5. twin 800-metre-long tunnels plus the rails etc.
Estimated costs would easily run to $4 billion plus. This cost is not justifiable given the only extra passengers uplift is from the low-density suburbs of Nerang and Robina along the route. (source GCB, Qld Rail Aurecon Study).
There will never be “fast rail” on this line due to the close proximity of stations and narrow gauge, however it is still classified as rapid transport due to the speeds achieved between stations vs Light Rail along the Gold Coast Highway, that cannot exceed 25km p/h on urban roads due to intersections, traffic lights, pedestrians.
Gold Coast Airport is predominately a passenger Airport servicing the Gold Coast and Tweed Shire and 87% arrive at the terminal by car or taxi. (GC Airport Masterplan 2017 Ch. 10).
Theoretically, Light rail is the preferred public transport to the airport, there may well be no justification for extending Heavy Rail from Bermuda Street or West Burleigh? Especially if it proves preferrable by passengers and locals, plus the M1 route is much faster than the proposed Gold Coast Highway which has considerable urban barriers to speed. (GC Airport Masterplan 2017 Ch.10).
Fact: There is no expectation of heavy rail to the airport in the GC Airport Masterplan 20-year outlook strategy.
In 2019 the Qld Government received an $8million grant to investigate extending Heavy Rail to the GC Airport. This is not funding for a Business Case it is purely to survey the project and identify the challenges.
TMR seems to have made no provision for Heavy Rail through the M1/Bermuda Street interchange currently under construction.
This supports the assumption Federal, State, Local government have no intention of delivering Heavy Rail for the Olympic Games and frankly, scoping, engineering, EIS studies, build, well sorry to disappoint the most ardent optimists, it just will not happen. However, using dual gauge along the M1 will connect the entire light rail AND heavy rail network between Brisbane, Gold Coast Airport and Coolangatta in time for the 2032 Olympics.
An enquiry was made on the 06/04/21 to Aurecon, Brisbane regarding the status of the Qld Rail commission to Aurecon to undertake a complete concept planning and costing study for the Varsity to Tugun heavy rail extension. A reply was received later that day from the relevant planning team which confirmed Aurecon is no longer working on this project and any further enquiries should be directed to TMR. TMR were subsequently contacted, and their response was they had no further information to add.
Heavy rail can be extended to Bermuda Street or West Burleigh on the east side of the M1 by following the original train alignment as a single track (as per the Brisbane airport rail connection) to connect with light rail in the vicinity of the original station. The last 400 metres may need a viaduct behind the factories due to the tight space. A viaduct needs 7 metres.
Looking well into the future, 20 to 50 years, with current technology revolutionising all industries, including public transport, it would be impossible to predict what modes of transport will fulfil the needs of the southern Gold Coast in 2041 – 2071. By then our residents may open an APP and order a drone pick up and drop off?
Back to the future? We can get it right with the Light Rail following the M1 route offering much greater up-lift of residents from a much broader area in need of a public transport with a much more robust connectivity than what is currently being proposed.
Author- Rob Richards
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