Re: [QLD] Rail cheaper than Busway!

["James C" <noemail@emailsux.com>]

Hope this is the end of Busway expansion for Brisbane. The amount of money
they spent on busway can get Gold Coast railway to Coolangatta and Sunshine
coast line completion and Browns plain/Acacia Ridge service, Toowoomba
deviation as well as Redclife line.

Cheers
James



Colin Weaver <weaver@powerup.com.au> wrote in message
news:396324BE.11CE1E14@powerup.com.au...
> It's worth reading the executive summary of the 1st stage report into
> the proposed Petrie to Kippa-Ring line at:
>
> http://www.ghd.com.au/pdf/execsum.pdf
>
> The feature of this summary which caught my eye was the relative
> costings of various transport modes:
>
> The chosen option is the original (and already resumed) corridor A:
>
> Heavy Rail: $104 million  for a projected 14,500 passengers per day
>
> Using corridor C (a proposed variation on the already resumed corridor):
>
> Heavy Rail: $167 million   for a projected 17,300 passengers per day
> Light Rail: $159 million   for a projected 8,500 passengers per day
> Monorail:   $257 million   for a projected 8,500 passengers per day
> Busway:     $144 million   for a projected 6,800 passengers per day
>
> Clearly, heavy rail following the original corridor wins hands down on
> cost/benefit ratio although the projected patronage is lower than the
> alternative corridors.
>
> I find it iteresting that the estimated Light Rail and Heavy Rail costs
> for the same corridor are so close, and that the projected patronage for
> light rail was so low.  I suspect this study was weighted in favour of
> heavy rail by the pre-existing corridor and the advantage of through
> running to the city.
>
> The most encouraging aspect of this is the very low projected patronage
> assigned to the Busway option.  Hopefully this shows that some
> recognition of the fact that busways are a total was of money is
> starting to sink in.
>
> cheers,
> Colin