By Antonia O’Flaherty
Copyright abc
New modelling suggests that Brisbane motorists could be delayed at some level crossing boom gates for up to 50 minutes of the morning peak hour as train services increase after the Cross River Rail opens.
Advocacy group Better Transport Queensland has estimated the impact of more frequent trains on gate down time at some rail crossings in greater Brisbane.
North of Brisbane, the worst delays would be felt at Todds Road in Lawnton which would have gates down for 50 minutes of the hour between 7am and 8am if the frequency of trains increased to 24 per hour.
The modelling also suggested level crossing gates would be down for 46 minutes of the hour at Bilsen Road in Geebung, 45 minutes at South Pine Road in Strathpine, and 32 minutes at Northgate Road in Northgate.
Level crossings in southern suburbs of Brisbane at Stones Road in Sunnybank would be closed for 46 minutes, while three crossings in Runcorn at Warrigal Road, Bonemill Road and Nathan Road would be closed for between 39 minutes and 28 minutes during the 7- 8am peak hour.
Cross River Rail was designed to lift the south-east’s rail capacity to a maximum 24 trains per hour and is expected to be operational by 2029, but timetables are yet to be finalised.
Modelling reignites calls for crossing removals
Better Transport Queensland president Rowan Gray said the modelling was based on a range of assumptions such as gates being closed for 90 seconds while trains passed through and current departure patterns remaining unchanged.
While the exact boom gate down times would depend on future timetabling, Mr Gray said overall, as train services increased, boom gates would be closed for longer.
“We really do need to remove more crossings,” he said.
“It’s not just about speeding up commutes for motorists or people driving to the station, it’s also about improving the reliability of train service.
“That can grind the whole train network to a halt and that’s impacting thousands upon thousands of commuters.”
Council conducts own modelling
The City of Moreton Bay council has also conducted internal modelling to estimate the impact of more trains on the rail network.
It found that the Strathpine crossing boom gates were expected to be down for the majority of peak hour, up to 55 minutes, from 2036 when the city was set to reach a population of one million and train frequencies were expected to increase.
Mayor Peter Flannery said the council was advocating for grade separation and infrastructure upgrades to maintain safety and traffic flow.
A spokesperson for the transport department said detailed timetable planning and scheduling would have a significant impact on boom gate down times.”TMR and Queensland Rail are yet to move through the timetable development process for Cross River Rail,” the spokesperson said.
Level crossing removal stalled
Level crossings have been a long-maligned issue — a source of congestion, near misses, collisions and fatalities.
Despite the safety concerns, no level crossings have been removed in greater Brisbane since 2014.
The last to be removed were at Telegraph Road in Bracken Ridge and Robinson Road in Geebung.
Transport Minister Brent Mickelberg said the government was focused on methodically addressing issues like level crossing removals.
“We are getting on with removing the level crossing at Beams Road — another project Labor started but failed to finish — as well as five additional level crossing removals as part of the $5.7 billion Logan Gold Coast Faster Rail project,” he said.
South-east Queensland’s passenger rail network is home to about 60 public level crossings, 36 of those in Brisbane.
Under the state’s level crossing program, launched by the previous government, 13 crossings were prioritised for upgrade or removal.
Peak motoring body RACQ welcomed the program but called for more to be removed to mirror other states such as Victoria where 87 crossings were removed in Melbourne since 2015.
“Replacing some with grade-separated crossings is essential to improving road safety, easing congestion, and ensuring our transport network operates efficiently into the future,” said RACQ’s traffic and safety engineering manager Greg Miszkowycz.
Queensland Rail was unable to provide current boom gate down times for rail crossings before deadline.
But the latest available data from 2023 shows 13 crossings in south-east Queensland are closed for more than an hour in the five hours between 5am and 10am on weekdays.
Across the five hours, the longest down times were recorded at Strathpine at one hour and 29 minutes, Sherwood Road in Sherwood was closed for one hour and 26 minutes, and Beams Road in Carseldine was closed for one hour and 14 minutes.
As level crossings remained in operation, a Queensland Rail spokesperson urged motorists and pedestrians to stay alert, drive to the conditions and obey the road rules at crossings.
“Near misses and collisions at level crossings don’t just affect the pedestrian or motorist involved, they can have long lasting psychological effects on employees, customers and emergency services,” the spokesperson said.