Brisbane Metro plans consider PPP

Subscribe to our newsletter and get the latest news and business opportunities in your inbox
Brisbane Metro plans consider PPP

This article is part of a daily series of MegaProjects articles. If you want to know more about PPP projects with a considerable size visit our MegaProjects section. You can receive them by email on a daily basis.

Brisbane City Council has announced that it is considering procuring its greenfield metro project as a PPP.

The Brisbane Metro project was first announced in 2016 as a solution to the current challenges facing Brisbane's bus network, which has reached capacity at many inner-city locations. It proposed repurposing existing busway infrastructure to provide a dedicated high-frequency metro corridor through the inner-city.

Brisbane Metro is a high-frequency public transport system that will cut travel times, reduce Central Business District (CBD) bus congestion and improve services to the suburbs. By fixing critical bottlenecks in the inner-city, and introducing new, high-capacity metro vehicles, it provides a cost-effective solution to Brisbane's bus congestion issues.

In May 2017, Brisbane City Council released the Brisbane Metro Business Case, following a 12 month detailed assessment of the benefits, costs and impacts of delivering the project. The Business Case confirms the project is a value-for-money investment in the public transport network that will provide significant benefits for both the city and the region.

Based on assessments undertaken as part of the Business Case, Brisbane Metro is expected to cost AUD944 million (US$698 million) and will deliver a benefit cost ratio of 1.91, meaning for every AUD1 of total expenditure, the project is expected to return AUD1.91 of benefits to Brisbane's economy.

A delivery options and Value-for-Money (VfM) assessment was undertaken for the project. A Design and Construct (D&C) delivery model was chosen as the traditional delivery model. An availability model was chosen to be the PPP delivery model to be assessed, based primarily on the fact that market (demand) risk relating to the Brisbane Metro is unlikely to be able to be transferred to the private sector given the Queensland Government’s responsibility for public transport delivery and revenue collection.

The initial assessment concluded that additional analysis is required in order to determine a preferred delivery model. Therefore, it is recommended both the PPP and traditional delivery options undergo further VfM analysis.

Brisbane Metro will be delivered through five key elements, including providing new and upgraded infrastructure, high-frequency 'turn-up-and-go' metro services, a new fleet of high-capacity metro vehicles, policy and operational improvements and new passenger and vehicle management systems.

Brisbane Metro comprises a high-frequency metro network across 21 kilometres of existing busway that links the Eight Mile Plains, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital (RBWH) and University of Queensland (UQ) Lakes and all busway stations in between. The alignment will feature two new high-capacity, high-frequency metro lines:

  • Metro 1 - Eight Mile Plains busway station to Roma Street busway station
  • Metro 2 - RBWH busway station to UQ Lakes busway station.

The expanded project will introduce a new fleet of 60 metro vehicles, each with capacity for up to 150 people, that can use the busway alongside other bus services.

Subject to funding and government approvals, construction of Brisbane Metro could commence in 2019, with the project completed in 2022.

Share this news

Join us

In order to get full access to News section, you must have a full subscription. You can check all the benefits of becoming a member and purchase a subscription on our membership page.