Expand services and move to free public transport

Right now, too many Queenslanders are stuck with slow, unreliable or even non-existent public transport. This means many people are missing out on 50 cent fares and have no choice but to drive.

We’ll boost capacity on our rail and bus network in South East Queensland, and put high frequency buses in 25 regional cities and towns across Queensland. 

Now that both Labor and the LNP have followed the Greens’ lead in making public transport far cheaper, we must expand the network to let more Queenslanders save money and move around without a car. 

Given that it would cost the State government roughly the same to make public transport completely free as to continue paying for ticketing and enforcement, the Greens will also transition to free public transport by 2026.

The Greens will:

• Create high frequency buses running every 10 minutes or better on major road corridors across Queensland including 25 regional towns and cities with a $700m annual investment
• Put an extra $4 billion into new public transport infrastructure like rail, trams and bus lanes, boosting total public transport infrastructure spending to $14 billion over four years
• Increase train service frequency in SEQ to every 15 minutes or better, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week
• Begin the transition to free public transport by improving infrastructure, frequency and coverage to deal with increased demand, pulling out of privatised ticketing contracts and developing better methods to track patronage

Lock in 50c fares 

The Greens will lock in 50 cent fares, and begin an ambitious but systematic transition to free public transport for everyone, starting in August 2026. 

Greens pressure has won permanent 50c fares in Queensland. While the Greens proposed $1 fares in 2017, and free fares from 2020 onwards, both Labor and LNP have resisted until very recently. Now with both Labor and LNP committed to keeping 50c fares, the Greens’ plan to make all public transport completely free will cost just an additional $254 million over 4 years, or about $80-90m per year. 

We’ll begin the transition to free public transport by improving infrastructure, frequency and coverage to deal with increased demand, pulling out of privatised ticketing contracts and developing better methods to track patronage.

Charging fares may now be costing the government money. Maintaining 50c fares is expected to cost $300m per year, with around $80-90 million remaining in expected revenue from Queenslanders paying 50c per trip. The costs for the privatised ticketing system are secret, but combined with the staff, police and court costs to enforce fares, it is likely higher than $80 million per year.  

Until public transport is free, we will suspend all fines for fare evasion offences. Security and community safety activities on public transport would continue.

High frequency buses in SEQ

We’ll expand high frequency buses in SEQ, running on every major road corridor every 10 minutes or better all day, and roll out a network of dedicated bus lanes to support the highest priority routes. 

For Brisbane, the high frequency bus routes would be based on the Greens’ Brissie Bus Boost plan. These routes would be extended into neighbouring areas including Moreton Bay, Redlands, Logan and Ipswich with a $400 million annual investment in more buses in SEQ. 

The Greens’ plan would more than double the number of high frequency bus routes in Brisbane. Brisbane would have 43 high frequency routes, up from a total of 21 today, allowing residents to get nearly anywhere by bus. These routes would focus on direct connections between suburbs rather than via the CBD. 

We would more than double the number of high frequency bus routes in every other SEQ Council area, including Logan, Gold Coast, Scenic Rim, Moreton Bay and Sunshine Coast. 

Independent public transport planning

Planning for the new high frequency routes will be done by Translink in its new role as an independent public transport agency, a recently announced State government reform the Greens have championed for many years. Translink will be responsible for coordinating timetables and routes between buses, trains and trams, and across Local Government Area boundaries. 

High frequency buses in 25 regional cities & towns

The Greens will bring high frequency buses to the regions by creating new services in 25 regional cities and towns from Cairns and Townsville to Mt Isa and Moranbah. 

We will invest $300 million annually in high frequency buses for the regions. All new high frequency bus routes in both regional and South East Queensland will run every 10 minutes or better seven days per week, from early until late, connecting jobs, shops and services. 

These new routes will be the first ever high frequency bus in almost every regional city and town. For example:¹ 

In Cairns, no bus runs more than every 15 minutes, and most buses have just a few services per day on the weekend. Under the Greens’ plan, Cairns would get 10 new high frequency bus routes running every 10 minutes. 

In Townsville, just a single bus corridor, Ross River Road, has services every 10 minutes, and just 1% of people use public transport. Under the Greens’ plan, Townsville would get 11 new high frequency bus routes running every 10 minutes. 

In Mackay, most buses are hourly, with no services on Sundays. Under the Greens’ plan, Mackay would get six new high frequency bus routes running every 10 minutes. 

In Warwick, most buses have three services per day on weekdays, with no services on Sundays. Under the Greens’ plan, Warwick would get two new high frequency bus routes running every 10 minutes. 

Trains every 15 minutes or better 

Right now Brisbane and SEQ are not taking advantage of our existing train network. By contrast, Perth has a similar train system with all-day frequency of 15 minutes or better across most of the network.²

The Greens will map out a detailed plan to increase train frequency in SEQ to every 15 minutes or better, 24 hours/day, 7 days/wk. We will transform a huge proportion of stations into “turn up and go”, where missing a train no longer means a frustrating 30 minute wait. 

Many train lines already have 15 minute frequencies or better at some times, but very poor service at others, for example:

• At Coorparoo, Morningside and all stations on the Cleveland line, Saturday and Sunday services are half-hourly³. 
• On the Cleveland line at Murrarie and Wynnum, even weekday services are mostly half-hourly. 
• At Fairfield, Moorooka, Salisbury and all stations on the Beenleigh Line, services are half-hourly on weekends.⁴
• On the Beenleigh line, at Sunnybank, Kuraby and other outer-suburban stations, even weekday services are mostly half-hourly. 
• At Windsor, Mitchelton and all other stations on the Ferny Grove line, trains are only half-hourly on weekends and after 7pm on weekdays.⁵ 
• At Kippa-Ring, Murrumba Downs and stations on the Redcliffe Peninsula line, trains are half-hourly outside peak hours on weekdays, and on weekends.⁶ 
• At Springfield and Richlands on the Springfield Line, services are half-hourly on weekdays outside peak hours, and on weekends.⁷ 
• At Hendra and all stations on the Doomben line, trains are never more than half-hourly, run hourly on Saturdays and not at all on Sundays.⁸ 

This plan will require infrastructure upgrades, purchasing additional trains, and duplications across various lines including the Shorncliffe, Doomben and Cleveland lines as detailed further below. 

Building new public transport infrastructure

The Greens will tax big mining corporations to fund more public transport infrastructure, boosting total public transport infrastructure spending to $14 billion over four years. 

Existing State and Federal government public transport infrastructure spending is $2.5 billion per year, or $10 billion over four years.⁹ The Greens’ new $4 billion Public Transport Expansion Fund would increase that spending to $14 billion. 

Cancelling wasteful toll roads

We will also cancel the wasteful $10 billion Gympie Rd Toll Tunnel, which would be the most expensive road project in Queensland history and generate even more traffic.¹⁰ That cost would be equal to all the other toll tunnels built in Brisbane over the last decade.¹¹ Both Labor and the LNP are planning to spend taxpayers’ money building this tunnel which will then be privatised, likely for Transurban who are major donors to both major parties.¹² 

Instead we will complete the Northern Busway and Transitway, extending to Aspley and Carseldine, and start planning for a second heavy rail connection to the Sunshine Coast. 

Specific projects

The Greens will use our $4 billion public transport expansion fund to secure matching federal funding for projects including: 

Outside Brisbane:

• Sunshine Coast Heavy Rail to Maroochydore and duplication from Beerburrum to Nambour
• Sunshine Coast Rapid Transit (link)
• Begin planning for a second Sunshine Coast rail connection, allowing faster express services.
• Flagstone & Beaudesert passenger rail
• Toowoomba passenger rail
• Gold Coast Heavy Rail extensions to Coolangatta 
• Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 4
• Faster rail to the Gold Coast, including quadruplication from Dutton Park to Beenleigh

In Brisbane:

• High frequency buses on major road corridors, as detailed in the Greens Brissie Bus Boost plan
• Support busway and transitway extensions to expand Bus Rapid Transit projects like the Brisbane Metro  
• Shorncliffe train line duplication (the Sandgate to Shorncliffe section) 
• Doomben train line duplication and extension to Hamilton
• Cleveland train line duplication
• Reopen the Tennyson train line between Corinda and Yeerongpilly
• Support a cross-campus bus link at UQ, connecting the west side with the south side directly, bypassing the CBD 
• Fund a detailed delivery study for light rail for Brisbane
• Begin planning for the next major cross-city linkage once Cross River Rail is complete, including an east-west link from Indooroopilly to UQ, Woolloongabba, Bulimba and Hamilton (this service could operate similarly to the new Sydney Metro). 

Costings

The Greens’ plan for free and frequent public transport in Queensland will cost $7 billion over four years. After savings, our will cost a net total of $4.5 billion over four years. 

With both Labor and LNP committed to keeping 50c fares, the Greens’ plan to make all public transport completely free will cost just an additional $254 million over 4 years, or about $80m per year, based on State government Budget papers. 

We would make savings by removing the need for the expensive privatised ticketing system as well as court and policing costs amounting to $80 million per year. 

Our plan would make total savings of $2.5 billion over four years by removing the need for ticketing services and fare enforcement, and cancelling the wasteful $10 billion Gympie Rd Toll Tunnel. 

Measure	2025-26	2026-27	2027-28	2028-29	Total over 4 years ($m)
High frequency buses for SEQ	$400	$400	$400	$400	$1,600
High frequency buses for regional towns and cities	$300	$300	$300	$300	$1,200
Expand public transport (additional spending)	$1,000	$1,000	$1,000	$1,000	$4,000
Maintain 50c fares	-	-	-	-	-
Make all public transport free	-	$76	$89	$89	$254
Savings from fares enforcement and ticketing	-$10	-$80	-$80	-$80	-$250
Cancel the Gympie Rd Toll Tunnel	-$33	-$252	-$1,000	-$1,000	-$2,285
Total	$1,657	$1,444	$709	$709	$4,519

Detailed breakdown: 25 regional cities and towns

The Greens will bring high frequency buses to the regions by creating new services in 25 regional cities and towns shown in the table below. All new high frequency bus routes in both regional and South East Queensland will run every 10 minutes or better, similar to CityGlider services in Brisbane.  

The particular routes will require detailed planning and community consultation, driven by Translink as an independent public transport authority but will generally connect key services and neighbourhoods like hospitals, industrial parks, shopping strips and schools. 

		Qld Greens' plan -->
Town or city	Population (2021)	Number of high frequency bus routes (indicative)	New kms of high frequency bus routes	New funding ($m/year)
Townsville	173,724	11	86	$44.5
Cairns	161,672	10	80	$41.5
Toowoomba	142,799	9	71	$36.9
Mackay	80,455	6	42	$21.7
Rockhampton	74,685	5	39	$20.2
Bundaberg	70,571	5	37	$19.2
Hervey Bay	60,626	4	32	$16.8
Gladstone	48,814	4	27	$13.9
Yeppoon	24,691	3	15	$8.0
Maryborough	22,237	2	14	$7.4
Gympie	19,435	2	13	$6.7
Mount Isa	17,936	2	12	$6.4
Warwick	14,110	2	10	$5.4
Emerald	14,089	2	10	$5.4
Dalby	12,082	2	10	$5.0
Airlie Beach - Cannonvale	10,646	1-2	9	$4.6
Kingaroy	10,147	1-2	9	$4.5
Bowen	9,612	1-2	8	$4.3
Moranbah	8,899	1-2	8	$4.2
Mareeba	8,585	1-2	8	$4.1
Ayr	8,200	1-2	8	$4.0
Charters Towers	8,040	1-2	8	$4.0
Atherton	7,348	1	7	$3.8
Innisfail	7,173	1	7	$3.8
Roma	6,522	1	7	$3.6
Total	1,029,895	82 new high frequency bus routes	585km of new high frequency bus routes	$300 million per year

Sources:
1 Regional bus timetables accessible
2 Transperth timetables
3 Cleveland line timetable
4 Beenleigh Line timetable here (note: Gold Coast trains stop at Park Rd, Altandi, Loganlea and Beenleigh.
5 Ferny Grove timetable
6 Redcliffe Peninsula line timetable
7 Springfield Line timetable
8 Doomben Line timetable
9 Queensland Transport and Roads Investment Program (QTRIP) 2023-24 to 2026-27.
10 $10 billion likely cost figure: North Brisbane Infrastructure Investment Proposal Summary, page 19.
11 Brisbane Times, 2019, No congestion-busting benefit from Brisbane's $10 billion toll roads: expert
12 Transurban and their subsidiaries donated $42,524 to Labor and $47,840 to the LNP between 2017 and 2024.