Major Australasian bus operator Kinetic has commenced new and improved bus services in the northern suburbs of Gold Coast this week.
As part of the latest stage of a $16.4 million funding initiative for bus service and infrastructure improvements in the area, Kinetic has provided an additional 529 weekly bus trips and two new routes.
To support this, Kinetic has recruited extra bus drivers and mobilised additional buses, with this latest stage seeing two new bus routes being introduced between Pimpama City and the train stations in Coomera and Ormeau.
Across the Gold Coast, Kinetic employs more than 700 people and operates 400 vehicles across four depot facilities.
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A range of improvements have also been made to existing services to enhance frequency, reliability and timetables while avoiding congestion.
The Northern Gold Coast Bus Improvement Initiative funding this comes courtesy of the City of Gold Coast and the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads.
Kinetic executive general manager for SE Queensland Martin Hall emphasised the importance of bus services in addressing the challenges of population growth and urban sprawl in major cities.
“Buses are consistently a leading mode of public transport and represent the most cost- effective and commercially viable solution to meet the growth trends in the northern parts of the Gold Coast,” Hall says.
“We welcome all investments in infrastructure that make it easier to travel locally or connect with other modes of transport, and to have daily access to public transport for many for the first time.”
The population of the Gold Coast is estimated to be more than 700,000 with projections suggesting it could reach around one million before 2050. Coomera is among Queensland’s fastest growing suburbs.
To support this latest expansion of services, Kinetic has welcomed an additional seven drivers and nine buses to support the northern Gold Coast region, with the latest network improvements resulting in an additional 529 new trips each week, as well as 36 new bus stops.
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