It been annouced to open midnight tonight, who will going to try drive in tunnel tomorrow morning?

it's will be 3 months free for go via, but watch out 6 speed camera installed in the tunnel.

i will be taking it tomorrow

and i am pretty sure it is more than 6 cameras

thought it was only free for 1 month

someone post a google map of this thing. I don't go anywhere near brisbane for work so I won't be taking it, ever. How much is it to go through after the honeymoon period is over?

its free for 1 month to everyone

and free for 3 months for existing govia tag holders

after that it is $2 to go most routs on it and like $2.50 to go from the ICB all the way to the airport (for a normal car)

A $2 toll from Sandgate Rd to Gympie Rd .. lawl

you know where Gympie Rd comes up to meet Stafford Rd when you are going outbound ? well that stretch of Gympie road up to just before the top of the hill is TWO LANES WTFOCOPTERZ Then two Toll Lanes merge in.

Its two lanes on the other side from the top of the hill till you go past the tunnel entrence then its 3 lanes again

ITS ULTRATARDED

hundreds of millions of dollars to make a 3 lane motorway into a two lane chokepoint to funnel traffic into the tollway.

A $2 toll from Sandgate Rd to Gympie Rd .. lawl

Heh, yeah seems a little excessive. What's stopping people from nipping through Wavell Heights?

why do they need 16 speed cameras ?
I thought speed cameras were placed in areas with a history of accidents ?

i remember saying this about the clem7

i really think the point of the camers in the tunnel is for saftey, how many f***heads would you see doing 200km/h runs through the tunnel without it. crashes in a tunnel are f***ed and are way more dangerous to everyone else than a normal crash on the surface

Increasing the diameter of the tunnel even slightly blows the cost out astronomically.

Also piss off with the negativitiy people - go back to commenting on CourierMail articles.

another tunnel ill never use.

and they are averaged camera's, so even if you slow for the camera, if you speed inbetween you'll get pingedspeed camera are just another revenue stream now

This is the best kind of camera, set cruise control to boring and even when my twenty year old technology makes a mistake, I should still be fine.

Awesome, another tunnel for me to avoid.

I don't want you guys driving through tunnels. You know what that symbolizes.

The amount of roads closed/reduced lanes just to make this tunnel possibly is stupid. Basically making it so you have to use this tunnel or sit in traffic that goes from 3 lanes to 1.

ICB was f***ed this morning as a result.

Tunnel opens and traffic is worst it's been for months...Coincidence?

i really think the point of the camers in the tunnel is for saftey, how many f***heads would you see doing 200km/h runs through the tunnel without it. crashes in a tunnel are f***ed and are way more dangerous to everyone else than a normal crash on the surface

Agreed. The speed cameras don't bother me, just don't speed. If there weren't any in the tunnels people would hoon through that s***, especially in the wee hours when traffic in there is light.

$2.50 seems ok toll wise. Now they just need to reduce Clem7 to $2 - $2.50 and this tunnel stuff might just work.

ICB was f***ed this morning as a result.

I use the ICB once a week to go over a mate's place at Kelvin Grove. It saves me a lot of time compared to any alternative route, but there's always maintenance being done somewhere along it.

last edited by Some Fat Bastard at 10:59:08 25/Jul/12

i heard a rumour that there are noise level detectors in the new tunnel that are intended to ping noisy exhausts & the like. confirm / deny ?

im saying not true demon, especially with trucks etc....

this tells you pretty much everything about the tunnel and they didnt say anything about it

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/airport-link-australias-safest-tunnel-20120719-22ccu.html

For the most part, providing new road capacity typically creates problems in other areas (i.e. the ICB congestion). Sometimes strategically the best thing the goverment can do from an affordability perspective is nothing at all.

The best example I can give is southside where the M3 becomes the M1 (Southbound merge between the Pacific Motorway and the Gateway Motorway at Rochedale). Anyone who drives through knows that the pacific motorway south of Garden City drops from three lanes to two. This causes congestion and delays for traffic from the merge all the way back past the Logan Road off ramp. If that was upgraded then you would flood all that queued traffic onto the merge with the Gateway Motorway and down onto the Pacific Motorway. This would mean you would need to upgrade the Gateway Merge and most of the on/off ramps as far south as the Logan Hyperdome.

That is obviously not cheap and few users would see a real benefit until the upgrades are made to the Hyperdome.

What is with people today talking out of their assesmouths?

Oh: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induced_demand

yet another piece of new brisbane road infrastructure that i will not use in the slightest!

Build a huge overpass from Indro to around... Chermside. Just go over all the buildings. Khxbi.

What is with people today talking out of their assesmouths?

Ha Greazy, you should probably pay more attention to where your fellow posters are/were employed before you mouth off hahah

If people want to drive in a way that causes traffic congestion,

lol what-the-f***

how dare they drive along arterial roads when going into the city, as the road network is designed for

http://www.memecreator.net/futurama-fry/showimage.php/726/not-sure-if-serious-or-just-stupid.jpg

I can't quite tell what Greazy is getting to with his response to my comment.....

Also not sure why you're linking to induced demand. Induced demand would be approximately 1% of all trips on the tunnel.

Civil Engineer - Traffic and Transport

Mostly a combination of design and transport modelling work.

I was a traffic engineer working on the EIS and concept design for Airport Link and also the airport roundabout upgrade. I was then a (small) part of the team that carried out the tender review but had no specific input into which tender was selected (aka Brisconnections).

You made the roundabout.. who the f*** makes a roundabout where the right lane has you merging into the left lane mid roundabout?

Drove through today from Campbell Rd entrance to East-West arterial and back again. It was surprisingly busy. The speed cameras are a pain as everyone drives under the speed limit... barely anyone doing 80. The bits with four lanes are impressive.

As an alternative to kingsford smith drive I will use it up until it costs money then only use it during peak hour or if I'm in a hurry.

I think tolls are a fantastic idea on congested roads ;)

So do I. Londons congestion zones reduced traffic massively when they introduced it. Use the charges to build our train network to grade separated and make the city bypasses free. Brisbane would be set.

However our government is being tard and going the bus route.

There is no way that kind of traffic jam will be there like that after this first period once everyone will gets over it

Do agree about the accident though, that merge is the most retarded thing I've seen in a while I am predicting the linemarking will change though there to split that up somehow. There is plenty of room there with that big awkward chevroned split between the lanes on Gympie road for it to change

last edited by paveway at 20:43:09 25/Jul/12

the projections are for the same level of traffic as the Clem7 predictions were.

Who actually comes up with those predictions ?
they must use Global Warming models.

last edited by FaceMan at 20:51:42 25/Jul/12

they just use really optimistic "factors" Faceman.

Not saying they used any of these but some obvious ways of getting a higher volume in the tunnel from a forecasting model would include:

- future road network assumptions i.e. Gympie Road becoming 8 traffic lanes and alternative competing routes don't get upgrades
- demographics i.e. assume huge densification around tunnel portals with highrise buildings etc. Chermside is already targeted to become a principle activity centre with high rise buildings.
- assume a very high value of time for Bribanites i.e. people are more willing to spend money to save time
- assumed daily profile i.e. 4 hour peaks in the tunnel instead of a typical 2-3hr peak with minimal off peak drop off
- assume low road capacities on competing routes and very high tunnel capacities
- increasing trip length distribution i.e. people are willing to travel further, more people choosing to travel to Westfield Chermside for example rather than Garden City.

135k a day pfft yer right

When the full toll comes in expect it to be about 135k x 0.5

Ticman: give it time, the Gateway Motorway North upgrade project is progressing through business case at the moment. Probably about 4-5 years away and I suppose subject to the new Governments continued backing of the project.

http://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/Projects/Name/G/Gateway-Motorway-North-planning-study.aspx

You realise they've started to build this already? It is now mid-2012 after all.

Turns out what they're doing is this: http://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/Projects/Name/G/Gateway-Additional-Lane-project.aspx

I won't use it unless going to the airport, but from what I'm seeing from friends they are loving it:

"Nundah to the city in 3.5 minutes. "

Clem7 is free for a week too i think.

Clem7 is free for a week too i think.

CLEM7 TOLL FREE THIS WEEKEND | 28 & 29 JULY 2012

I'm flying in to Brissy tomorrow and have to go to Underwood

I am so, so sorry for you.

I think tolls are a fantastic idea on congested roads

Yeah for sure, charge a toll for entering the "CBD/City/Coggested Area", regardless of the road chosen if we want this user pays system.

Make the toll for driving in the area, not for using the road that best suits the travel. It's counter productive in reducing congestion, i.e. you want people using the new roads as much as possible. Instead they will be barely used (after the tolls kick in) and a bad outcome is a direct result of privatising key infrastructure.

Similarly there should be a toll (the same toll) for crossing the river ... by any bridge, (assuming we want this user pays style infrastructure).

I lold at 135k per day as well. These guys must be high when they dream up these usage numbers.

Someone in a news comment put it this way:

There's 86,400 seconds in a day, and they're predicting 135k cars per day. That's 1.56 cars entering per second. Lol?

135K figure isn't as bad as it seems when you look at the tunnel as 3 separate tunnels (1 for each major entry/exit).

haven't seen any stats on fuel saved but brisbanetimes did a few runs through it to see how much time is saved.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/putting-airport-link-to-the-test-20120725-22ps5.html

Using Lutwyche road is just plain frustrating. I wouldn't use it if I had to pay full car toll fees I don't think. Still, I think motorists need to wake up and ditch they 4WD that they are driving themselves and get motorbikes/mopeds. It will save them thousands. literally.

Just look at the photo, how many duel+ passengers do you see? I don't think I even see one, but surely there is?

I see a motorcycle in that pic toll, therefore your entire point is invalid!

that bloke in the cement mixer should have car-pooled ;)

need to wake up and ditch they 4WD that they are driving themselves and get motorbikes/mopeds. It will save them thousands. literally.

What if they use the 4wd on the weekend as a 4wd and pick up the kids from after school care on the way home? Wouldn't the extra vehicle, rego, etc offset that?

I tried car pooling once (in my 4wd), dropping five female co workers home on the way, my mrs at the time didn't like that very much and it didn't last long.

I was a traffic engineer working on the EIS and concept design for Airport Link and also the airport roundabout upgrade.

F*** that whole airport "upgrade" btw. That roundabout is a f*****g pain in the ass and I have no idea what anyone was thinking with the rest of the upgrade.

Previously it was a basically-always-empty double-lane highway that was 100km all the way from the motorway exit, to the airport. You had to slow down once - at that roundabout where the International Airport turn off is. Aside from that it was a beautiful dead straight road.

Now there are a series of overpasses, massive winds, corners - I have no idea where I'm going half the time. I have gotten confused at least once exiting the domestic terminal trying to get to International because the signage is poor and now there are roads and overpasses flying all over the f*****g place.

I am sure there is a reason for these changes but I cannot see what they are. Previously my only complaint was that in peak hour traffic congested around the motorway exit/entrance. I don't think I ever saw much traffic on the old airport road, even during busy flight scheduling times.

Now there's a f*****g set of lights before you can enter the domestic terminal that always seems backed up and it takes forever to drive through the domestic section proper.

It seems to me that it has done the absolute classic f*****g Brisbane trick of ignoring the fact that congestion occurs around a bunch of bottlenecks, adding a stack of new lanes where there hasn't been a lot of congestion, and then adding a couple of new bottlenecks for good measure.

The only positive thing I can say about all these stupid toll roads is that they all seem SO badly planned that they are almost inevitably going to go out of business and be taken over by the state, at which point hopefully they'll become toll free roads - so the Queensland taxpayer ends up with all this great infrastructure courtesy of some a******* who were good at telling investors that Queenslanders would love to pay tolls to save 4 minutes off their trip.

I've never paid a toll in Brisbane.

Also why don't you look at it this way. If you were standing on the side of road like say Gympie Road during the evening peak. You could have 4500 cars pass you in a peak hour (more most likely). That is 75 cars a minute or 1.25 cars per second passing you by.

Having driven on Gympie Rd in recent times I would never imagine it is possible to watch cars go buy at that rate for more than a few minutes at a time before getting stuck in traffic or hitting a red light :) Although to be fair there have been a lot of roadworks so maybe it has all changed around.

edit: btw I hate driving, in case it's not obvious, and would have loved to have seen all that investment go into more light rail/subway

would have loved to have seen all that investment go into more light rail/subway

Yes! Exactly!

Light rail is the only thing Melbourne have that is good.

Until Brizzy gets a ring road system, the traffic will always be a clusterf***.

Huh ?
Ring road ? Really ? ... I never need to drive to the gap

We've got numptys down here arguing against putting in light rail on the Gold Coast because of the (IMHO minor) traffic congestion the roadworks is causing. They usually don't budge when I point out the irony.

Actually Dazhel the problem with the light rail is it follows the middle section of the best connected part of the coast southport to surfers.

It doesn't connect to the existing rail lines at any point, and it doesn't help the real problem connections east-west. North-south works well enough on the coast.

I'm all for light rail, but they went about it all wrong. Also, the trams are ugly as f***.

i do like these threads and reading the `THEY SHOULD HAVE DONE THIS, A DECADE AGO`

im sure they would f*****g love to connect everything to everything if they could

there is usually very good reasons why they cant though

is a s*** idea to implement on an existing city

if you start the city on a ring road system, it is great

amusing things in this thread:

northside roads
light rail for brisbane
driving on the northside

You are more likely to get shot and stabbed on the southside

sorry bro main roads are main roads

they get congested both north and southside

i use webster road everyday and it is awesome

and your farefield road only takes you as far as southbank it is still a fujcking pain in the ass to get over to the city

congestion is congestion bro - sorry to let you know but it is as bad both sides

and fyi, there hasnt been a stabbing in my street for over 1 year.

how is that a good stat?

it would have been a bad stat if there was a stabbing in the last week

you live on the coast, theres s*** going down daily

sweet, we could be neighbours!

Police shot a guy in my street not too long ago. North side ftw!

I took both tunnels last night since the Clem 7 was free for the weekend. I was in aww of the Airport Link tunnel, it's certainly the big brother of the Clem 7. I took the Sunshine Coast exit rather than the Airport. I'll save that for another time.

i couldn't imagine like double the amount of cars trying to go through there in peak times

each end would be f***ed

this afternoon was one of the worst days i've seen, north end was banked up back into the tunnel

S**** me that every f***wit drives at 10-20 under the limt... ffs, f*** off and do 80 you sk's.

oh dude READING MY MIND

F*** i rage at these f***wits who all sit there doing 60 - 70 for no reason literally want to put my knee through their face

first chance i get i'll pull out into a lane, usually the one going to the clem7 or the airport which usually have less people and give it a squirt to get to 80 and cruise, f*** it pisses me right the f*** off

I rage at that in general, number 1 driving pet hate but when can't just deal with it because there are 1754477 speed cameras watching it is worse

http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/315377_491870014171995_838859695_n.jpg

they tested 30km zones in front of a few select schools in Brisbane once, it was a colossal f*** up because they made it 24/7 and everyone raged at them non stop.

Whilst normally I agree loads of speed cameras are crap I make an exception for tunnels for 2 reasons - bogans love flooring their s***box cars with 12" exhausts thru them, and by design tunnels become extremely dangerous in the event of a vehicle loosing control. You only have to look to Europe to see history of deaths in tunnels resulting from crashes.

BrisConnections chief executive Dr Ray Wilson predicted Airport Link would attract about 135,000 vehicles a day one month after it opened.

An average of 77,320 vehicles have travelled daily on the Airport Link tunnel between Bowen Hills, Kedron and the Brisbane Airport during its first week of trading.

77k while free, good luck getting 165000 after 15 months lol. Whoever does the traffic forecasts are smaert.

haha oh facey, never a clue to be seen

i don't toll, i am pretty sure i heard there is legal action being tacken against the people that did the modelling for the clem7

can't lie, i get to work in like 25-30mins is working out pretty awesome for me