FAQs

Q. Why light rail?

The Sunshine Coast is one of the fastest growing regions in Australia and based on existing growth there will be half a million people living here in less than 20 years. The challenge for council, business and the community is to balance growth and opportunity with sustainable lifestyle values and choices.

Maroochydore to Caloundra will be focus of economic growth over the next two decades with the development of areas such as Palmview, Caloundra South and Maroochydore.

Development will have unsustainable impacts on our transport system and therefore on our economy if they are not supported by high quality, fast and frequent public transport from the start, that people will choose to ride on.

Light rail will be transformational for the sunshine coast. It is a sleek, modern mass transit service that is able to move people efficiently without the need to always rely on cars. If we can reduce the dependence of the Sunshine Coast on oil-based transport we can create more high quality lifestyle choices in the region that includes attractive options to the private car for some trips and a more sustainable community.

Q. What are the advantages?

Light rail is a flexible transport option that works well in many environments. The infrastructure needed to support a light rail service has a smaller 'footprint' than trains which means it is able to be integrated more seamlessly with existing traffic and pedestrians.

Light rail is cost effective solution for the Sunshine Coast environment and by offering alternatives to the private car will help protect the current lifestyle values as we continue to grow in population. Greenhouse gas emissions from transport are increasing at a faster rate than any other energy-using sector. Currently, about 27 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions in South East Queensland come from road transport. These emissions and other transportation pollutants have a large impact on local air quality and environmental and personal health.

Light rail uses less energy than buses and with 3.6 times the capacity of a bus, can carry more people. A modern light rail vehicle also creates less pollution with approximately seven times less emissions per passenger kilometre than a bus.

Q. Where would the light rail go?

The light rail service will form an integral part of the Sunshine Coast's future public transport system providing a backbone to support and cater to the needs of a thriving, developing region. Eventually the system will link all the major destinations and attractions within the urban coastal precincts and connect with bus and train services in the hinterland communities.

The pre-feasibility phase will identify potential corridors for the core light rail network together with staging options to be investigated. A short list of priority corridors will be analysed in the pre-feasibility stage and further potential corridors will be studied in the full business case proposal.

Early preliminary scoping work has identified the core light rail system will extend from Caloundra to Maroochydore via the new University Hospital Kawana town centre, Alexandra Headlands and Mooloolaba. Further extensions to key destinations such as the Sunshine Coast Airport and the proposed Caloundra South Town Centre will also be investigated.

The plan is to provide better public transport to the whole of the Sunshine Coast. Light rail will be supported by more bus services, modified routes and better connections which will reduce travel times to areas not directly serviced by a light rail service.

Q. What is the expected time-frame and what are the key stages?

The Sunshine Coast Light Rail Project will be progressed in four major phases shown in the table below. This is based on the key decision "gates" utilised by the Queensland Government in its Project Assessment Framework (PAF).

Light rail 2020 project milestones

Phase       Activities                                                           Completion      

1              Pre-feasibility and rapid economic appraisal        April 30 2012   

2              Feasibility, concept design and business case     June 2014          

3              Detailed planning, tendering, and contracting     June 2017

4              Construction of first stage of light rail                 June 2020       

Phase 1 concentrates on pre-feasibility and building a case to invest significant funds in a
detailed feasibility study and business case, to be conducted over a two year period. If approved, this detailed feasibility and business case (termed Phase 2) would lead into a third phase of detailed design and tendering incorporating best practice financing arrangements. The fourth and final phase is the commencement of construction in 2017.

Phase one is being conducted by the Sunshine Coast Regional Council (SCRC). It is envisaged subsequent phases would be conducted by a proposed partnership between SCRC and the Department of Transport and Main Roads (DTMR).

It is envisaged the first stage of light rail, probably connecting Maroochydore to Caloundra via the Kawana Town Centre/ Sunshine Coast University Hospital, could be completed in 2020. Construction of subsequent stages would be subject to further funding but would proceed throughout the 2020 decade and into the 2030s.

Q. What are the technology options being considered in Phase 1?

Phase 1 of the Sunshine Coast Light Rail Project is dedicated to completing a pre-feasibility and rapid economic appraisal of a light rail service on theSunshineCoast. The findings from Phase 1 will be presented to Council so they can decide whether to proceed to full feasibility (Phase 2).  Since the full feasibility phase will require significant time and resources, the pre-feasibility work aims to provide enough information so Council can determine whether the project has a reasonable chance of success.

 The Phase 1, feasibility study will:

• Clearly identify the potential need on theSunshineCoast for an enhanced public  transport      solution;
• Establish objectives and service requirements for a solution;
• Identify the alternative solutions available;
• Develop and review each solution at high level to determine which solution/s can potentially meet the project objectives;
• Identify for each solution potential high level opportunities and barriers to implementation and sustainable operation such as high level risks, issues and impacts including possible mitigation;
• Identify opportunities to enhance land use around key activity areas
• Develop business case information such as early input on potential patronage, costs and delivery
• Suggest a discrete range of solutions for full feasibility investigation in Phase 2; and
• Document the results in a pre-feasibility report.

Light rail is Council’s suggested option, given the nature of the future travel task and the desire to transform the urban settlement patterns in the coastal corridor.  However there will actually be five technology options studied in the pre-feasibility study. These are shown in the table below.  It is expected that no more than two technology options will be taken through to the full feasibility phase, should progression to this phase be approved.