Re: Country(link?) - try walking instead

["Switched On" <yaropolk@hotmail.com>]

Chris Stratton <stratton.chris.cp@nospam.bhp.com.au> wrote in message
7vob4g$84017@atbhp.corpmel.bhp.com.au">news:7vob4g$84017@atbhp.corpmel.bhp.com.au...
> > Did you know that it takes only 45 mins to get to Surfers from Brisbane
by
> > coach or rail/bus? Do you know how long it takes to get to Surfers from
> > Murwillumbah? It's not much faster, let me tell you. If necessary, QR
> could
> > stop the Gold Coast train at one of the better stations on the Beenleigh
> > line (like Yeerongpilly),  where it runs parallel with the XPT and
> > passengers could swap without ever having to get into Roma St and stuff
> > around with crowds. QR is quite flexible with this sort of arrangement,
> but
> > CountryLink lacks the entrepreneurial spirit to be able to make it so.
> >
> > Honestly, how many people who can afford to stay in Surfer's Paradise
> would
> > catch the XPT from Sydney? They can catch a plane to Coolangatta for the
> > same price and arrive in much better shape for their holiday!
> >
> But it is still a long way by bus from Surfers to Coolangatta. Most of the
> pensioners that travel on the XPT would probably stay at Coolangatta
anyway
> as it is cheaper. My mother-in-law ( not a pensioner yet) stayed at
> Coolangatta last month and went by XPT to Murwillumbah and then bus to
> Coolangatta.

With great respect to your mother-in-law and all of the (most worthily) aged
pensioner concessioned travelling public, to make the service revenue-based,
it would have to rely on the highest population base to make it pay its way.
Coolangatta is not actually very far from Surfers (I was just there on
Saturday) and a bus from Robina station will take you there.. as will a
number of coaches from Roma St in 50-60 minutes or so, depending on the time
of day.

I would also suggest that the majority of the overall number of *paying*
passengers who make the complete journey or who could potentionally be
making the complete journey are not actually interested in Coolangatta, and
if they are, then they will be happy to catch a coach or rail/bus from Roma
St, especially since Roma St is especially geared up for transfers to a
great many destinations indeed, and, as I said, one extra stop on the
Beenleigh line could be performed to get these people onto a CityTrain to
Robina quicker than they can say "CountryLink".

Would you not agree?