The creators of the Sunshine Coast light rail have been recognised for their efforts in drafting plans for a new public transport option for one of Australia’s biggest tourist hotspots. Image: Sunshine Coast Council.
It’s not just Australia’s capital cities that are hopping on board the light rail wagon, municipalities like the Sunshine Coast are getting their own gears into action to roll out the widely popular public transport option.
And after an extensive Sunshine Coast light rail consultation that was held in late 2014, the council has accelerated hard to become part of Australia’s elite club of cities that have or are developing light rail or trams such as Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Canberra, Parramatta and Newcastle.
Following that consultation, the council developed feasibility study titled The Sunshine Coast Light Rail: Shaping Our Future, prepared by design firm Hassell in conjunction with council’s existing light rail team.
This report has been recognised by the Planning Institute of Australia at its recent Australian Urban Design Awards by winning the national award in the “Policies, Programs and Concepts-Large Scale”.
The study came at a cost of $750,000 and has so far been the centrepiece of the council’s long term plan to boost the city’s liveability, protect the environment and ensure the city maintains a vibrant economy.
Sunshine Coast Council Mayor Mark Jamieson said he was pleased that the light rail project, which is in its infancy, was already receiving strong recognition.
“Light rail is a contemporary transport option in popular use around the world,” Mr Jamieson said.
He added that “this early report demonstrated to council that light rail has the potential to support the lifestyle of our residents now and into the future”.
Although the Sunshine Coast light rail is a network that is “some years away”, Mr Jamieson said planning for the future has to start now.
“We are forecast to have the second fastest population growth rate of all Queensland regions over the next 15 to 20 years and Sunshine Coast Council is shaping a future where we cater for population growth through good planning,” Mr Jamieson said.
Hassell principal and light rail sector lead Toby Lodge said the Award was a great endorsement of the project.
“The beauty of the plans is the potential for light rail to improve local access and transport networks across the Coast while also activating community spaces along the proposed route,” Mr Lodge said.
He said it is timely for the project to attract broad interest and recognition.
“Light rail has the potential to provide far more to communities than simply a new way to move around and is a great fit for the Sunshine Coast lifestyle,” he said.
The judging panel for the AAUD 2015 awards said the project was a well-considered design solution that integrates what is currently a disparate set of suburban developments and in an innovative way, integrates public transport into linear coastal urban development.
They also said the project included excellent consultation, incorporating a wide range of stakeholder views and excellent images communicate the vision.
