Gold Coast Rapid Transit - take it underground, please!

Earlier this year, the Queensland government announced a plan to commit $600 million to deliver the Gold Coast Rapid Transit System (GCRT) in 2015. This project is part of the SEQ Infrastructure Plan and Program which will invest $10 billion to improve public transport and cycling infrastructure in SE QLD over the next 20 years.

These figures may sound impressive as they're beyond most people's personal budgets, but it's not so impressing when you look at the figures in context. The Queensland government's 2007-08 annual budget has allocated $5,767 million to main roads and transport. ...But if you average out the $10 billion for public transport over 20 years, it's about $500 million per year.

That's less than 10% of the annual "main roads and transport" budget on improving public transport in SEQ!! (home to about 67% of the population of Queensland)

...Now back to that $600 million set aside for the GCRT - as far as I can tell, they're planning on spending the bulk of this over a period of about 8 years - around $75 million/year. With about 13% of Queensland's population living in the Gold Coast, it'd be fair for us to receive 13% of the $5,767 million roads & transport annual budget - that would be around $750 million/year.

There's that "magic" 10% figure again... Is that all that public transport is worth?

For Australia's premier tourist destination, the current state of public transport on the Gold Coast is embarrassing.

The latest proposed route for the GCRT indicates that the service will share the road with regular traffic through the length of Surfers Paradise from Cypress Ave (Vomitron) down to Remembrance Drive.

Are these people for real?

• Unless I'm missing something, it appears that the first 100 metres of this route down Surfers Paradise Blvd from Cypress Ave would clash with the southern turns of the current Indy circuit.
• This stretch of road must surely be one of the biggest bottle necks for traffic on the Gold Coast (if not SEQ)
• The Surfers Paradise bus stop has to be one of the busiest (and slowest) bus stops I've ever seen. Not only is there always a large number of people waiting for a bus here, many of them are tourists who are unsure whether they're getting on the right bus, how much they need to pay... This stop needs to be attended by competent staff which know the services well and are equipped to pre-sell tickets to passengers to reduce delays to services passing through.
• How many distracted tourists need to be hit by quiet-running trams/buses before Queensland Transport realise that an underground system would have been better for numerous reasons?
  
• The Gold Coast, and Surfers Paradise/Broadbeach should be treated as a national showcase. It should literally be "paradise" in every possible way. Many international tourists and business people will probably never see any more of Australia than the Sydney CBD and Airport, the Great Barrier Reef, and in the Gold Coast they'll see
• Surfers Paradise,
  
• Jupiters and
  
• perhaps the theme parks

The Queensland government has (is?) already considered new underground train lines and stations in the Brisbane CBD, so why not the Gold Coast? The Burleigh Chamber of Business wants the system to travel underground through their suburb - personally, I think it makes a lot of sense to take it underground through Surfers Paradise also.

The length of tunnel I'm talking about here is about 2km. There are probably also other areas which would be good candidates for underground tunnels, like Scarborough St Southport, Burleigh. In all of these locations, there are potential station sites which would be of mutual benefit to passengers and developers/property owners. The current plans show a station at the foot of Q1 Tower, across the road from Pacific Fair, and outside the Convention Centre and Cavill Ave. ...I read recently about plans for a "high rollers" casino within the transit centre redevelopment. Can you imagine taking the elevator from your hotel room or office down to a metro station without even having to step foot out into the heat and/or rain?

Can (or have) the Queensland government or Gold Coast council solicit/demand a donation/levy to pay for the right/convenience of having a rapid transit station at their doorstep or in their basement?

As the GCRT propaganda says "The population of the Gold Coast is growing rapidly and shows no signs of slowing down. By 2026 ... forecast to exceed 740,000. More people mean more cars ...and more congestion. In order to persuade people that they don't always have to use a car for their journey a real alternative to car travel must be found..."

No matter how we do this, it's going to be a significant investment, and one that's long overdue. Let's not waste this opportunity by trying to save a few dollars - let's do what needs to be done to ensure a better future which doesn't turn Surfers Paradise (or the rest of the Gold Coast) into a hell on earth.