Just a year into the trial, on demand transport is clearly a roaring success on the Gold Coast
In just its first year of running, the On Demand Transport (ODT) trial in the Gold Coast’s northern region has reached a milestone, with more than 50,000 trips taken since the service commenced.
The two-year trial, launched by the Queensland government in partnership with operator Kinetic in March last year, offers a personalised service seven days a week to and from key locations within the service area.
“The service meets the needs of a large group of regular users and continues to attract new users, with more than 9,000 app downloads for the service,” Queensland environment, Great Barrier Reef, science and youth affairs member Meaghan Scanlon says.
“Customers say they enjoy that our on-demand buses offer a flexible public transport option, connecting people with essential services such as shopping centres, employment and health care; and also integrates with the Translink bus, tram and train network.
“The two-year trial in Pacific Pines and Nerang/Highland Park provides public transport coverage in locations where regular public transport services are not available or possible.”
Building on the success of the initiative, the Queensland government has launched a similar ODT service north of Brisbane.
Last month, Queensland Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey said the Hervey Bay service would align closely to the successful Gold Coast trial.
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“The On-Demand Transport trial on the Gold Coast has been a roaring success so far and we’ve received a lot of positive feedback about it,” Bailey says.
“So it makes sense to roll out a similar model in other locations like we are doing here in Hervey Bay.”
The Translink On Demand app manages Gold Coast customer’s bookings easily, tracked where their service was and showed real-time notifications to see when services will arrive.
“It’s no surprise we’ve reached the 50,000 trip milestone within the first year as customers respond to the convenience and flexibility that ODT offers,” Scanlon says.
Using On Demand Transport
ODT is free for seniors and veterans travelling during off-peak hours (8.30am to 3.30pm on weekdays and all day on weekends). To be eligible you must be a resident of the Gold Coast, and you must have a sticker on your Seniors go card.