1 00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:08,870 Ryan Murphy is a lifelong resident of Brisbane, Australia, and he was 2 00:00:08,870 --> 00:00:13,159 the youngest councillor ever elected to the City Council back in 2012. 3 00:00:13,589 --> 00:00:18,009 And now, he's the Chair of the Brisbane City Council Transport Committee, which 4 00:00:18,074 --> 00:00:22,534 Which plans for integrated public and active transport services across Brisbane, 5 00:00:22,955 --> 00:00:26,904 and I'm excited that he's a guest on our Transit Unplugged podcast today. 6 00:00:27,214 --> 00:00:31,814 I'm Paul Comfort, and I recently went to Australia for a 10 day visit and recorded 7 00:00:31,814 --> 00:00:36,004 a number of podcasts and a couple of our TV shows, and this is the last of 8 00:00:36,004 --> 00:00:37,754 four podcasts that came out of that. 9 00:00:38,110 --> 00:00:42,050 Ryan and I met, uh, actually, uh, at the docks, uh, and the, 10 00:00:42,190 --> 00:00:43,589 where the ferry system takes off. 11 00:00:43,589 --> 00:00:45,019 They've got an amazing ferry system. 12 00:00:45,019 --> 00:00:48,979 We recorded this podcast while on board several ferries and on 13 00:00:48,979 --> 00:00:51,099 the docks there, uh, at Brisbane. 14 00:00:51,499 --> 00:00:56,079 And, uh, he talks about the CityCat system and how they're growing ferry systems. 15 00:00:56,335 --> 00:00:59,795 To become not just a way to get from A to B, but actually 16 00:00:59,795 --> 00:01:01,195 be a destination on their own. 17 00:01:01,695 --> 00:01:04,995 He also talks about their cross river rail project going underneath 18 00:01:04,995 --> 00:01:06,085 the river that we visited. 19 00:01:06,414 --> 00:01:10,234 And you can see on this month's episode of Transit Unplugged TV. 20 00:01:10,604 --> 00:01:13,835 And he talks about the new Brisbane BRT system, Metro. 21 00:01:14,140 --> 00:01:17,950 Which is these amazing buses that look like you're on a rail system. 22 00:01:17,950 --> 00:01:21,340 We also showcase them on this month's episode two on YouTube. 23 00:01:21,350 --> 00:01:24,689 So we have a television show, Transit Unplugged TV, that kind 24 00:01:24,689 --> 00:01:26,470 of goes along with this podcast. 25 00:01:26,470 --> 00:01:29,319 So the things he's talking about you can see if you go over to our 26 00:01:29,320 --> 00:01:31,169 YouTube channel, Transit Unplugged TV. 27 00:01:31,540 --> 00:01:33,840 This though is an amazing podcast interview. 28 00:01:34,155 --> 00:01:36,805 With a bright leader for not only Australia, but I 29 00:01:36,815 --> 00:01:38,125 would suggest for the world. 30 00:01:38,345 --> 00:01:39,855 A global transport leader. 31 00:01:39,855 --> 00:01:43,245 I think you'll really enjoy this conversation and feel his passion 32 00:01:43,444 --> 00:01:46,935 for public transportation like mine, a fellow transit evangelist. 33 00:01:47,095 --> 00:01:50,065 All on this episode of Transit Unplugged. 34 00:01:53,363 --> 00:01:58,413 Excited to be in Brisbane on the Big River here with the chair of the City Council's 35 00:01:58,423 --> 00:02:00,373 Transportation Committee, Ryan Murphy. 36 00:02:00,373 --> 00:02:02,273 Ryan, thanks so much for hosting us today. 37 00:02:02,653 --> 00:02:03,333 Good afternoon, Paul. 38 00:02:03,343 --> 00:02:04,363 Thanks for having me on the show. 39 00:02:04,663 --> 00:02:06,263 Tell us about where we're at right now. 40 00:02:06,263 --> 00:02:08,563 We're riding inside one of your awesome tell us. 41 00:02:08,613 --> 00:02:11,683 We're sitting on a CityCat, which is a catamaran. 42 00:02:11,683 --> 00:02:15,963 It carries about 170 people, and they go up and down the Brisbane River to 22 43 00:02:15,973 --> 00:02:18,193 stations and stops throughout our river. 44 00:02:18,313 --> 00:02:22,633 And we carry about 5 million passengers a year on this system, and in Brisbane, 45 00:02:22,943 --> 00:02:26,543 for a long time, I think it's been number 3 on TripAdvisor, in terms of the things 46 00:02:26,543 --> 00:02:27,703 that people do when they come to the city. 47 00:02:27,703 --> 00:02:28,073 Really? 48 00:02:28,073 --> 00:02:31,803 Yeah, so, I mean, a lot of cities, their public transport doesn't really feature. 49 00:02:31,883 --> 00:02:34,193 There is an attraction in it's own right, but I think people 50 00:02:34,193 --> 00:02:36,953 really love the CityCats and Brisbane residents love them too. 51 00:02:37,163 --> 00:02:41,763 Yeah, I was just in Halifax, and went on their ferries, and then also in, 52 00:02:41,813 --> 00:02:45,273 my buddy Kevin Quinn runs TransLink in Vancouver, Canada, and they've got 53 00:02:45,273 --> 00:02:46,533 them too, and the same kind of thing. 54 00:02:46,763 --> 00:02:50,463 People just ride them just to ride them, but this is a fantastic, service, you 55 00:02:50,488 --> 00:02:53,378 offer how many vehicles and all that kind of stuff and then fit it into 56 00:02:53,378 --> 00:02:54,948 the context of your overall network. 57 00:02:55,278 --> 00:02:56,531 Yeah, we've got about 22, CityCats. 58 00:02:56,531 --> 00:02:58,495 We've got five KittyCats, too. 59 00:02:58,495 --> 00:03:00,185 They're little, little cross river versions. 60 00:03:00,185 --> 00:03:00,405 Oh, okay. 61 00:03:00,405 --> 00:03:02,145 CityCats and KittyCats. 62 00:03:02,505 --> 00:03:02,991 That's great, man. 63 00:03:02,991 --> 00:03:03,405 Yeah, that's right. 64 00:03:03,405 --> 00:03:05,205 A little bit of a Brisbane sense of humor. 65 00:03:05,495 --> 00:03:06,465 We try to put in everything. 66 00:03:06,865 --> 00:03:12,125 But, it provides effectively a 15 to 30 minute service, a 15 minutes 67 00:03:12,125 --> 00:03:15,075 during the peak at 30 minutes off peak, up and down the river. 68 00:03:15,465 --> 00:03:17,655 the peak lasts throughout the day though, so there's that 69 00:03:17,655 --> 00:03:19,975 constant supply of, people. 70 00:03:19,975 --> 00:03:22,315 And we know our busiest days on Saturday when, when Brisbane 71 00:03:22,315 --> 00:03:25,195 residents like to get out and they don't need to be at work on time. 72 00:03:25,195 --> 00:03:28,325 So, you know, they could take a little bit longer to get where they want to go. 73 00:03:28,685 --> 00:03:32,005 And we know that the mix of, tourists and leisure users and commuters 74 00:03:32,005 --> 00:03:33,685 is about 50 50 on this service. 75 00:03:33,895 --> 00:03:37,755 So it does perform an important commuter function, but as I said, it's part 76 00:03:37,755 --> 00:03:39,415 of the tourism offering in our city. 77 00:03:39,415 --> 00:03:42,745 And you can go anywhere, all the way up river, it's about a 90 minute journey 78 00:03:42,745 --> 00:03:46,255 from the start of the mouth of the river all the way up to the last stop. 79 00:03:46,255 --> 00:03:46,575 So you can 80 00:03:46,585 --> 00:03:47,475 What river is this? 81 00:03:47,615 --> 00:03:48,175 It's the Brisbane River. 82 00:03:48,175 --> 00:03:48,905 That's what I thought. 83 00:03:48,905 --> 00:03:49,125 Yeah. 84 00:03:49,135 --> 00:03:49,745 Brisbane River. 85 00:03:49,745 --> 00:03:49,915 Yeah. 86 00:03:49,915 --> 00:03:51,955 I don't mention the name because it's the name of the city, but 87 00:03:51,955 --> 00:03:53,075 yeah, we're on the Brisbane River. 88 00:03:53,375 --> 00:03:54,435 You know, this is unique. 89 00:03:54,465 --> 00:03:57,885 People in America don't think, realize this is really a river city and like, it 90 00:03:57,885 --> 00:04:01,115 like runs its way through the city and like the whole city is built around it. 91 00:04:01,275 --> 00:04:04,525 Yeah, the whole city is built around the river And so bridges are really important 92 00:04:04,555 --> 00:04:08,595 in Brisbane for getting around and they're big bottlenecks in our transport system, 93 00:04:08,595 --> 00:04:13,205 so the river is a great way to avoid those windy roads that snake through 94 00:04:13,205 --> 00:04:15,335 Brisbane and just get out there and see. 95 00:04:15,695 --> 00:04:21,005 And it used to be a port city, there was a lot of maritime, agricultural traffic 96 00:04:21,005 --> 00:04:26,185 that would come up here and load hay and copper and minerals and then as that's 97 00:04:26,185 --> 00:04:30,085 all moved to dedicated port facilities at the mouth of the river, Brisbane 98 00:04:30,085 --> 00:04:34,055 residents all of a sudden felt comfortable to live on the river in the 50s and 60s 99 00:04:34,055 --> 00:04:38,005 and, it was about 1996 that the Lord Mayor of Brisbane, then Jim Soorley, 100 00:04:38,005 --> 00:04:40,415 decided to, start the CityCat system. 101 00:04:40,435 --> 00:04:43,515 A limited number of terminals, a limited number of services and we're now in 102 00:04:43,515 --> 00:04:44,945 our fourth generation of vessels. 103 00:04:44,955 --> 00:04:46,465 We've got a double decker. 104 00:04:46,555 --> 00:04:49,515 They keep getting bigger and bigger and bigger and more accessible, so, you know, 105 00:04:49,515 --> 00:04:52,285 we've got quite a big fleet now and, operated by River City Ferries which 106 00:04:52,285 --> 00:04:55,475 is, Sealink and so they're a listed company in Australia, they run maritime 107 00:04:55,475 --> 00:04:57,425 services, all around the country for us. 108 00:04:57,545 --> 00:05:01,135 I was just Just with Howard Collins, my friend down from Sydney, we were on 109 00:05:01,395 --> 00:05:06,335 Tasmania and he was there inspecting seven new ferries that they're getting built 110 00:05:06,515 --> 00:05:09,615 in Tasmania that they'll bring back to Sydney and run on their ferry service. 111 00:05:09,625 --> 00:05:13,805 So, a lot of water, obviously, around the island and a lot of great ferry services. 112 00:05:14,225 --> 00:05:17,475 Tell us about, Ryan, the overall transportation network in Brisbane. 113 00:05:17,865 --> 00:05:19,355 Walk us through some of what you've got here. 114 00:05:19,765 --> 00:05:22,845 Brisbane's a city really, built on the back of the bus. 115 00:05:23,215 --> 00:05:26,685 It's a city that, the city council runs its own transport company. 116 00:05:27,065 --> 00:05:31,955 Next year, 2025, will be our 100th year in operation, and we own, and operate, 117 00:05:32,065 --> 00:05:35,925 all, the vast majority of the city's, public transport fleet, whether that's 118 00:05:35,925 --> 00:05:39,815 buses or CityCats, A lot of other cities, like Sydney and Melbourne, very much, 119 00:05:40,175 --> 00:05:43,515 cities built on the back of rail, and rail does the heavy lifting, but in Brisbane, 120 00:05:43,835 --> 00:05:47,945 we've got 27 kilometers of busways, and buses, do the heavy lifting, so. 121 00:05:47,945 --> 00:05:48,715 Dedicated busways. 122 00:05:48,715 --> 00:05:49,415 Yeah, dedicated busways. 123 00:05:49,415 --> 00:05:50,125 I saw them today. 124 00:05:50,175 --> 00:05:50,505 Yeah. 125 00:05:50,615 --> 00:05:52,025 Some are even grade separated, actually. 126 00:05:52,085 --> 00:05:52,715 It's everything it looks like. 127 00:05:52,715 --> 00:05:53,185 It's great. 128 00:05:53,185 --> 00:05:53,585 Yeah. 129 00:05:53,585 --> 00:05:55,175 Really high quality infrastructure. 130 00:05:55,245 --> 00:06:00,385 and, it means we're a lot more similar to a city like, you know, Curitiba or Rio. 131 00:06:00,795 --> 00:06:04,095 so a lot of Australians don't really understand that, that there are 132 00:06:04,095 --> 00:06:07,575 bus rapid transit cities out there because they don't visit the places 133 00:06:07,575 --> 00:06:08,925 where they are, but they are there. 134 00:06:08,935 --> 00:06:10,315 You just have to look hard enough to find 135 00:06:10,315 --> 00:06:10,405 them. 136 00:06:10,405 --> 00:06:10,905 Yeah. 137 00:06:10,905 --> 00:06:13,455 So you've got a lot of buses that you run yourself. 138 00:06:13,755 --> 00:06:13,995 Yep. 139 00:06:14,075 --> 00:06:14,345 Yep. 140 00:06:14,385 --> 00:06:15,195 And then what else? 141 00:06:15,625 --> 00:06:17,695 So the bus now it's about 80 million a year. 142 00:06:17,695 --> 00:06:22,065 We have a city rail network which is quite expansive but only about a third 143 00:06:22,065 --> 00:06:23,435 of the patronage of the bus network. 144 00:06:23,865 --> 00:06:26,885 And historically the Council and the State Government built these 145 00:06:26,885 --> 00:06:28,865 networks in parallel to each other. 146 00:06:28,865 --> 00:06:32,475 So there's not been that really great multi modal opportunity that you get 147 00:06:32,475 --> 00:06:34,085 in some cities between bus and rail. 148 00:06:34,085 --> 00:06:35,565 We're in the process of fixing that now. 149 00:06:35,565 --> 00:06:38,755 We signed a landmark agreement with the State Government earlier this year 150 00:06:38,755 --> 00:06:42,085 to fix our bus to rail connections and really integrate all the modes 151 00:06:42,085 --> 00:06:43,835 ahead of the Olympics in 2032. 152 00:06:43,845 --> 00:06:48,145 So there's some big reforms happening in the city over the next few years. 153 00:06:48,165 --> 00:06:51,535 Well Councilman, we were, we jumped off one ferry and we got on a new one. 154 00:06:51,555 --> 00:06:52,555 Tell me about this new one. 155 00:06:52,855 --> 00:06:57,075 this is the, the next generation, generation 4 CityCat, so, this, 156 00:06:57,115 --> 00:07:00,095 I think there's about 6 or 7 of these in service at the moment. 157 00:07:00,525 --> 00:07:02,695 they are our latest offering. 158 00:07:02,695 --> 00:07:07,235 They feature these wide panoramic windows, space for people in wheelchairs, 159 00:07:07,265 --> 00:07:09,975 previously couldn't see out the windows because the windows were too high. 160 00:07:10,075 --> 00:07:10,315 Okay. 161 00:07:10,315 --> 00:07:12,475 But now they've got the best seat in the house right here. 162 00:07:12,785 --> 00:07:15,785 you've got USB charging throughout, better, more comfortable 163 00:07:15,785 --> 00:07:18,155 seating and, wider, spaces. 164 00:07:18,275 --> 00:07:19,865 We even put a bar in this one as well. 165 00:07:19,870 --> 00:07:20,030 Oh, nice. 166 00:07:20,030 --> 00:07:22,235 So we hire them out for functions and parties oh yeah. 167 00:07:22,355 --> 00:07:23,075 Occasionally. 168 00:07:23,415 --> 00:07:26,025 and it's got a, a double deck as well, so you can go up on the top 169 00:07:26,055 --> 00:07:28,365 and there's a, a, a sun shade. 170 00:07:28,425 --> 00:07:32,595 'cause we are unfortunately, get quite a lot of, UV light up here in Queensland. 171 00:07:32,935 --> 00:07:35,305 so you can sit up there on the top deck and watch the river go 172 00:07:35,305 --> 00:07:36,325 by and the wind in your hair. 173 00:07:36,325 --> 00:07:37,105 It's a really great. 174 00:07:37,475 --> 00:07:38,335 way to spend the weekend. 175 00:07:42,487 --> 00:07:44,707 We'll get right back to my interview with Ryan Murphy, but 176 00:07:44,707 --> 00:07:46,397 first I have a favor to ask of you. 177 00:07:46,877 --> 00:07:50,327 Please take a moment to participate in our listener survey. 178 00:07:50,657 --> 00:07:54,157 It'll only take a few minutes of your time, and your input is invaluable to 179 00:07:54,157 --> 00:07:58,857 me for planning future episodes, and I want to get your feedback on the show. 180 00:07:59,257 --> 00:08:01,817 So just go to transitunplugged. 181 00:08:01,817 --> 00:08:05,837 com forward slash survey to fill it out online. 182 00:08:06,377 --> 00:08:09,237 The link will also be in this podcast's show notes. 183 00:08:09,517 --> 00:08:10,497 Thank you for your help. 184 00:08:10,497 --> 00:08:11,457 I really appreciate it. 185 00:08:15,080 --> 00:08:17,380 All right, let's jump back into the conversation on buses. 186 00:08:17,680 --> 00:08:20,810 You were telling me about that the bus network is the backbone of what 187 00:08:20,810 --> 00:08:24,970 you've got going on here, but today I visited one of your amazing operations, 188 00:08:24,970 --> 00:08:27,840 which you piloted, I think, for a month and soon when you get the 189 00:08:27,840 --> 00:08:29,790 whole fleet in, you'll jump back in. 190 00:08:29,950 --> 00:08:34,850 It's a BRT like service, but it's a Metro, and I'm telling you, Ryan, the vehicles 191 00:08:34,850 --> 00:08:36,110 are some of the coolest things I've seen. 192 00:08:36,470 --> 00:08:41,280 Yeah, it's a really cool vehicle, and what it is is part of Brisbane Metro, which 193 00:08:41,280 --> 00:08:46,360 is It's a bus rapid transit project, to replace, several of our congested lines, 194 00:08:46,420 --> 00:08:51,670 the triple one, the sixty six, with, a large double articulated electric bus. 195 00:08:51,680 --> 00:08:56,050 So, this is the Hess Light Tram 25, it's in service in a number of cities in 196 00:08:56,320 --> 00:09:01,080 France and Switzerland, but we've taken that bus that was existing, we've brought 197 00:09:01,080 --> 00:09:04,510 it into Australian design rules, we've upgraded it, we've put, six residential 198 00:09:04,510 --> 00:09:06,870 homes worth of air conditioners on the top because they don't need them 199 00:09:06,870 --> 00:09:08,190 a lot in, France and Switzerland. 200 00:09:08,490 --> 00:09:13,530 And we brought it here, to enable it to improve the capacity of our busway system. 201 00:09:13,580 --> 00:09:18,230 And, what we do is we, we basically, the concept is we take the existing bus routes 202 00:09:18,230 --> 00:09:22,430 that have buses that can carry about 76 people on them, we replace them with, a 203 00:09:22,430 --> 00:09:27,150 bus that can carry 170 people, and then we also, truncate large parts of our 204 00:09:27,160 --> 00:09:31,050 network where the bus would previously run half or a quarter full all the way into 205 00:09:31,050 --> 00:09:35,500 the CBD, we then truncate that at busway stations to bring that resource back 206 00:09:35,500 --> 00:09:40,440 into the network So, it's about Brisbane doing what other bigger cities have done, 207 00:09:40,720 --> 00:09:42,250 getting used to the two seat journeys. 208 00:09:42,680 --> 00:09:47,080 That's what Brisbane Metro is about in our city and we also deal with a big problem 209 00:09:47,080 --> 00:09:50,670 that we have in the core of our city, which is bus congestion and we take about 210 00:09:50,670 --> 00:09:54,770 a third of those buses clogging up the CBD and redirect them into the suburbs, so it 211 00:09:54,770 --> 00:09:58,660 solves a number of busway problems that we 212 00:09:58,660 --> 00:10:00,055 have. 213 00:10:00,261 --> 00:10:01,581 I saw that today actually. 214 00:10:01,581 --> 00:10:04,771 I saw bus after bus after bus this morning. 215 00:10:04,941 --> 00:10:08,891 I was at Anzac Square and I was having coffee and I, when I used to run 216 00:10:08,891 --> 00:10:10,231 Baltimore, I saw the same problem. 217 00:10:10,531 --> 00:10:14,821 I'd have, you know, 11 buses go by in one minute and it was congested 218 00:10:14,821 --> 00:10:16,501 and so that, I get what you're doing. 219 00:10:16,521 --> 00:10:19,241 You're going, this is the feeder into the main network. 220 00:10:19,381 --> 00:10:21,371 Yeah, I mean a lot of, a lot of cities do that. 221 00:10:21,371 --> 00:10:24,741 I think it's a bit of a choice between, you know, what type of 222 00:10:24,741 --> 00:10:26,011 light rail are they going to have. 223 00:10:26,041 --> 00:10:26,321 Yeah. 224 00:10:26,331 --> 00:10:30,911 In Brisbane, we did look at converting the busway to light rail, but we have such a 225 00:10:30,911 --> 00:10:35,381 big out of catchment, that we would have to all terminate, I wouldn't be able to 226 00:10:35,381 --> 00:10:39,761 use the busway at all, so there'd be so many thousands of introduced transfers. 227 00:10:40,121 --> 00:10:44,592 This, this product sort of sits between, buses at the high level 228 00:10:44,592 --> 00:10:46,032 and then trams at the low level. 229 00:10:46,032 --> 00:10:48,782 It's a, it's a tram or a light rail light capacity. 230 00:10:48,802 --> 00:10:51,242 Improvement, but without anywhere near the cost. 231 00:10:51,272 --> 00:10:55,022 So if you think about something like, your iPhone has wireless charging, well 232 00:10:55,022 --> 00:10:56,672 this is like a tram without the wires. 233 00:10:56,672 --> 00:10:59,612 So we're effectively going back to the tram system that Brisbane had, 234 00:10:59,982 --> 00:11:01,632 back in the, in the, in the forties. 235 00:11:01,912 --> 00:11:04,912 and we're starting again with the, the latest and greatest wireless technology. 236 00:11:04,912 --> 00:11:08,562 So these vehicles all use flash charging from panto graphs and, we 237 00:11:08,562 --> 00:11:10,122 charge 'em at the end of every trip. 238 00:11:10,122 --> 00:11:13,662 So they'll, they'll finish their route metro one or two, and they'll 239 00:11:13,662 --> 00:11:15,192 flash charge for just six minutes. 240 00:11:15,342 --> 00:11:16,737 Battery's fully topped up, and then off they'll go. 241 00:11:17,052 --> 00:11:22,372 And you hope to open this service in your 100th anniversary year of 2025. 242 00:11:22,372 --> 00:11:22,932 Is that right? 243 00:11:23,042 --> 00:11:23,582 Yeah, we do. 244 00:11:23,582 --> 00:11:24,872 It's it's exciting. 245 00:11:24,922 --> 00:11:28,292 we, we've had a lot of interest from all around the world, about what we're 246 00:11:28,292 --> 00:11:32,432 doing here to, to really take that bus rapid transit product forwards. 247 00:11:32,432 --> 00:11:36,382 And, a lot of cities, you know, in, in particularly, you know, Vancouver has 248 00:11:36,382 --> 00:11:40,562 been reaching out to us, Auckland, you know, big cities with, busways, but they 249 00:11:40,562 --> 00:11:43,562 want to know how to get the next level of performance out of their busway. 250 00:11:43,562 --> 00:11:43,631 Yeah. 251 00:11:43,632 --> 00:11:48,032 And, we think this This product sits at a great point in between that full 252 00:11:48,032 --> 00:11:51,732 conversion to light rail and just running buses at a rapid frequency 253 00:11:51,762 --> 00:11:55,892 because you get both capacity and you get a really high quality passenger 254 00:11:55,892 --> 00:11:59,232 offering and people are seeking that out more and more in public transport. 255 00:11:59,232 --> 00:12:02,152 It's not just about where it goes, it's about whether you get there 256 00:12:02,152 --> 00:12:04,982 in style and comfort and whether there's those amenities for you. 257 00:12:05,282 --> 00:12:10,472 It feels and looks like you're on a brand new light rail vehicle on the inside. 258 00:12:10,762 --> 00:12:11,642 It's got that vibe. 259 00:12:12,015 --> 00:12:13,635 Speaking of rail Let's talk about rail. 260 00:12:13,748 --> 00:12:15,868 Brisbane is the capital of Queensland, right? 261 00:12:15,908 --> 00:12:17,028 You're That's right. 262 00:12:17,028 --> 00:12:17,178 Yes. 263 00:12:17,338 --> 00:12:20,728 And so, the State's heavily involved in the rail service here, is that right? 264 00:12:20,808 --> 00:12:24,188 Yeah, the state government runs the, the rail network, Queensland Rail, City 265 00:12:24,188 --> 00:12:27,908 Rail, it goes by those sort of names, it's, it's actually a, a reasonably 266 00:12:27,908 --> 00:12:31,578 good network across Brisbane, has great coverage, around the historical rail 267 00:12:31,578 --> 00:12:35,318 lines, the issue has always been the, you know, the cost to serve and, and, 268 00:12:35,348 --> 00:12:38,378 the patronage has never been particularly impressive to warrant further investment. 269 00:12:38,678 --> 00:12:42,348 The city's going through a very significant investment in rail at 270 00:12:42,348 --> 00:12:44,928 the moment with Cross River Rail, which is the second crossing of the 271 00:12:44,928 --> 00:12:46,938 Brisbane River of the rail network. 272 00:12:46,938 --> 00:12:52,778 So it links the Gold Coast line, Beanlea line, with a new line that runs under the 273 00:12:53,088 --> 00:12:56,638 river and creates some new underground stations in the heart of Brisbane City. 274 00:12:56,638 --> 00:13:01,968 That's wrapping up at the moment, I don't think it'll commission probably 275 00:13:01,968 --> 00:13:06,808 until 2026, but that'll add a lot more capacity into the railway. 276 00:13:06,928 --> 00:13:10,188 network as well so we can ramp up that frequency and capacity 277 00:13:10,188 --> 00:13:11,398 ahead of the Olympics in 2032. 278 00:13:11,698 --> 00:13:12,988 Yeah, let's talk a little about that. 279 00:13:13,288 --> 00:13:17,108 Tell us about the plans the city has and a little bit about the Olympics coming. 280 00:13:17,318 --> 00:13:18,918 So we just did a show in LA. 281 00:13:19,008 --> 00:13:21,158 Of course, they're the next one and then you're the one right after that. 282 00:13:21,158 --> 00:13:24,008 Yeah, Paris, LA and then Brisbane. 283 00:13:24,008 --> 00:13:25,278 City, city no 284 00:13:25,278 --> 00:13:25,988 one's ever heard of. 285 00:13:26,288 --> 00:13:27,928 They will after this. 286 00:13:27,928 --> 00:13:28,673 Well, we, we, we. 287 00:13:28,843 --> 00:13:32,923 We are so humbled and so honoured to be standing, you know, with Paris 288 00:13:33,043 --> 00:13:39,023 and LA in those Olympic cities and we understand the task in front of 289 00:13:39,023 --> 00:13:44,263 us to retrofit this city's, the small city's public transport system to a 290 00:13:44,263 --> 00:13:46,683 system that has to host summer games. 291 00:13:46,683 --> 00:13:51,323 I mean, that is a momentous undertaking and it really fills me with both, 292 00:13:51,623 --> 00:13:54,143 you know, hope of what we can change and what we can do in the 293 00:13:54,143 --> 00:13:56,553 next few years and also dread of, you know, what if we get it wrong? 294 00:13:56,853 --> 00:14:00,243 We've put in place a range of initiatives, the Lord Mayor a few months ago 295 00:14:00,243 --> 00:14:03,713 released a document called the Race to Gold, and it's all about these 296 00:14:04,023 --> 00:14:07,793 transformative improvements we can make to our city's public transport network 297 00:14:08,093 --> 00:14:10,073 in the eight year run up to the Games. 298 00:14:10,073 --> 00:14:13,853 And we're very much looking to bus rapid transit as one of those things that 299 00:14:13,993 --> 00:14:15,583 we know we can do that in eight years. 300 00:14:15,593 --> 00:14:20,173 If we want to launch a light rail project in Australia today, it's eight years just 301 00:14:20,173 --> 00:14:23,183 to get the permitting done basically, so you know, it's similar in America. 302 00:14:23,233 --> 00:14:29,413 Of But bus rapid transit can give us some of those lighter touch solutions, 303 00:14:29,413 --> 00:14:33,753 things like transitways and bus priority with these metro vehicles that we've 304 00:14:33,753 --> 00:14:37,453 got now and we can deliver these step change improvements in capacity to 305 00:14:37,453 --> 00:14:40,553 parts of the city where we, we know we actually need to increase the amount 306 00:14:40,553 --> 00:14:44,173 of seats we have on public transport by 50 percent to meet the games demand. 307 00:14:44,173 --> 00:14:46,903 So if you go to any city in the world and say, I need you to increase the public 308 00:14:46,903 --> 00:14:49,757 transport system by 50%, most planners would tell you, you're crazy, right? 309 00:14:49,757 --> 00:14:52,223 It's going to enable some really bold decision making. 310 00:14:52,523 --> 00:14:55,513 We need to make decisions that might have been very difficult 311 00:14:55,683 --> 00:14:57,843 with the politics of today. 312 00:14:58,143 --> 00:15:02,163 There's an Olympics urgency and Brisbane residents really don't want to see the 313 00:15:02,163 --> 00:15:04,303 city let itself down on the world stage. 314 00:15:04,313 --> 00:15:06,763 So we're going to use that, we're going to harness that over the next few years. 315 00:15:06,863 --> 00:15:09,553 Tell me some about your background and history and how you got 316 00:15:09,773 --> 00:15:12,533 so interested and involved in transportation and in government. 317 00:15:12,833 --> 00:15:15,103 I've been in this role for coming up on five years. 318 00:15:15,403 --> 00:15:19,143 And, prior to this I was in public relations for major infrastructure 319 00:15:19,143 --> 00:15:20,753 and resource projects in Queensland. 320 00:15:20,763 --> 00:15:24,063 things that people generally don't like in their backyard, like, copper mines 321 00:15:24,063 --> 00:15:28,643 and, dams and, pipelines and things like that, so, I, I guess I got used 322 00:15:28,643 --> 00:15:32,103 to having difficult conversations about things that, that are necessary for 323 00:15:32,103 --> 00:15:35,403 the economy but, that people might not necessarily like in their backyard. 324 00:15:35,843 --> 00:15:40,083 Now I get to do something that is, so exciting because I'm 325 00:15:40,083 --> 00:15:40,683 serving as a civil servant. 326 00:15:41,153 --> 00:15:41,163 CityCouncil. 327 00:15:41,163 --> 00:15:41,173 CityCouncil. 328 00:15:41,173 --> 00:15:42,843 I've been at Council for 12 years now. 329 00:15:42,883 --> 00:15:43,293 Oh wow. 330 00:15:43,303 --> 00:15:46,823 I love serving my community, but the transport role gives me the opportunity 331 00:15:46,823 --> 00:15:51,413 to help our city kind of grow up and fix the problems that I experienced as a user, 332 00:15:51,413 --> 00:15:54,173 as a consumer of our city's transport. 333 00:15:54,323 --> 00:15:57,570 I don't like that, why can't I see a screen on this CityCat at 334 00:15:57,570 --> 00:16:00,270 the moment telling me what my next destination is and how long it's 335 00:16:00,270 --> 00:16:01,020 going to take me to get there. 336 00:16:01,473 --> 00:16:05,313 These are the customer facing elements that so many transport systems are 337 00:16:05,313 --> 00:16:06,313 getting right around the world. 338 00:16:06,573 --> 00:16:10,303 I want to bring that here so that we can also get that right and we've got so 339 00:16:10,303 --> 00:16:13,983 many great companies that are looking to make Brisbane home, looking to set up a 340 00:16:13,983 --> 00:16:18,493 presence in the city since we were awarded the Games, that I actually think this 341 00:16:18,493 --> 00:16:19,673 is not going to be as hard as it looks. 342 00:16:19,673 --> 00:16:20,413 It just takes will. 343 00:16:20,713 --> 00:16:21,413 That's wonderful. 344 00:16:21,580 --> 00:16:23,670 Let's talk about the nation of Australia. 345 00:16:24,070 --> 00:16:28,410 Where does public transportation sit in the list of priorities for this country 346 00:16:28,410 --> 00:16:29,410 and where do you think it's going? 347 00:16:29,760 --> 00:16:34,310 I don't think transport has been a particular priority for Australian 348 00:16:34,310 --> 00:16:36,520 politicians until recently. 349 00:16:36,820 --> 00:16:41,680 I think successes like the Sydney Metro really, I think, shown politicians of 350 00:16:41,680 --> 00:16:46,320 both sides in Australia the potential for these game changing projects to 351 00:16:46,350 --> 00:16:51,620 actually make a lasting difference I mean, the amount of money that we 352 00:16:51,620 --> 00:16:57,040 spend in this country, particularly on highway and road transport, is 353 00:16:57,230 --> 00:17:00,250 astronomical compared to what we would spend on urban public transport. 354 00:17:00,700 --> 00:17:05,880 and, there are real benefits to ESG and the sustainability of cities that 355 00:17:05,890 --> 00:17:09,130 you can drive when you get public transport systems functioning well. 356 00:17:09,240 --> 00:17:12,130 I always make the argument, around the need for public transport, 357 00:17:12,130 --> 00:17:15,710 around the avoided cost of road widening and road infrastructure. 358 00:17:15,710 --> 00:17:16,830 I mean, you look at L. 359 00:17:16,830 --> 00:17:20,370 A. You know, they try to build their way out of traffic congestion by adding 360 00:17:20,370 --> 00:17:22,130 more lanes and it's, it's not worked. 361 00:17:22,140 --> 00:17:25,140 But you improve the public transport product, you can 362 00:17:25,140 --> 00:17:27,150 avoid billions in road work. 363 00:17:27,160 --> 00:17:30,300 So if you try and make that, I think, financial argument, because Australians 364 00:17:30,300 --> 00:17:33,250 are very practical in that way, all of a sudden you start to see people go, 365 00:17:33,260 --> 00:17:36,960 Oh, actually, maybe we should have an additional bus, or maybe the span of 366 00:17:36,960 --> 00:17:38,170 hours should be a little bit longer. 367 00:17:38,560 --> 00:17:42,450 but you have to reach that threshold of quality that people will, will use it. 368 00:17:42,670 --> 00:17:44,160 And, you know, I think we're very close. 369 00:17:44,300 --> 00:17:44,830 That's great. 370 00:17:45,417 --> 00:17:47,847 Ryan we wish you the very best as you continue to help lead this 371 00:17:47,857 --> 00:17:49,347 city's transportation future. 372 00:17:49,450 --> 00:17:50,660 No, thanks for doing what you're doing, Paul. 373 00:17:50,660 --> 00:17:52,940 It's very important and very much appreciated for all of us 374 00:17:52,940 --> 00:17:55,130 out there that are trying to make a difference in this field. 375 00:17:55,460 --> 00:17:55,780 Thank you. 376 00:17:59,197 --> 00:18:02,497 Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Transit Unplugged 377 00:18:02,497 --> 00:18:04,907 with our special guest, Ryan Murphy. 378 00:18:05,152 --> 00:18:08,875 Hi, I'm Tris Hussey, editor of the podcast, and coming up next week on 379 00:18:08,875 --> 00:18:14,023 the show, we have Tom Drozt CEO of Ben Franklin Transit in Washington State. 380 00:18:14,312 --> 00:18:17,042 As Paul mentioned in the episode, we'd really appreciate your 381 00:18:17,052 --> 00:18:18,622 help with our listener survey. 382 00:18:18,861 --> 00:18:23,287 Just go to transitunplugged.com/survey, and just take a few minutes to 383 00:18:23,287 --> 00:18:27,277 fill it out, it'll really help us plan episodes and keep making 384 00:18:27,277 --> 00:18:29,557 Transit Unplugged better and better. 385 00:18:29,584 --> 00:18:32,294 You'll also find a link to the survey in the show notes. 386 00:18:32,475 --> 00:18:34,945 Transit Unplugged is brought to you by Modaxo. 387 00:18:35,175 --> 00:18:38,735 At Modaxo, we're passionate about moving the world's people, and at 388 00:18:38,735 --> 00:18:42,365 Transit Unplugged, we're passionate about telling those stories. 389 00:18:42,755 --> 00:18:46,055 So until next week, ride safe and ride happy.