The government noted that a single bus can take 50 cars off the road,with a train able to remove 600. Meanwhile,public transport use is still about 13 per cent below pre-pandemic levels.
What they said
At a media conference in Brisbane,Miles said the government planned a major communications campaign to encourage people to travel by public transport.
“And part of the message to them will be,this is use it or lose it. If this is effective,if this reduces congestion and sees lots of people get back on public transport,then obviously we’ll consider making it permanent. If it doesn’t work … it won’t continue,” Miles said.
While the option of free trips was discussed,the premier said a small fee was important to ensure people tapped on and off or bought tickets to provide usage data to review the outcome of the trial and manage the network of buses,trains,ferries and light rail.
If this is successful,we may well see crowded services – and that would be a good result for the trial,and we will do what we can to manage that as quickly as we can.
Premier Steven Miles
Miles said the government would be “very pleased” if usage returned to pre-pandemic levels (adjusted for subsequent population growth),with road congestion data also in focus.
The August 5 start date was set to allow time for preparations on already-busy services.
Perspectives
Speaking alongside Miles,RACQ chief executive David Carter welcomed the announcement as part of the organisation’s long-established policy that public transport needed to be more affordable,convenient and flexible.
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LNP deputy leader Jarrod Bleijie said the opposition supported the measure but labelled its six-month timeframe a “cynical” election ploy.
He said the reliability and frequency of services also needed to be addressed,along with extending them to more areas.
Greens Maiwar MP Michael Berkman accused Labor of “half-heartedly” taking on his party’s policies,while his South Brisbane colleague,Amy MacMahon,said it would be cheaper to “just switch off the fare machines”.
Rail Tram and Bus Union Queensland branch secretary Peter Allen said:“Announcements like this will go a long way to encouraging more people to use public transport.”