Please scroll to the bottom for the latest updates:
06 October 2020
Attached is the first email sent to registered Kawana Forest Residents regarding the outcome of our survey.
EMAIL 1 Results of Bus Survey email to residents 061020
2 November 2020
Meeting with Cr Peter Cox to discuss our survey outcomes and the letter received from Director General of TMR. With a follow-up email outlining the below comment.
It is important to note that the CAMCOS (heavy rail between Kawana to Beerwah) station is still listed in the master plan to stop on the other side of the entry to our estate. If that was deemed an area suitable for a station in the future, then surely a bus service now would allow decision-makers to understand the patron numbers to justify a station.
4 November 2020
Attached is the second email sent to registered Kawana Forest Residents regarding the Kawana Forest Community Transport Needs – Survey Results and Next Steps Update. Including the response from the Director-General in response to our request to meet with TMR to present our survey results and recommendations.
Letter from Director General of Transport and Main Roads[151623] 151020
4 November 2020
Email MP Jarrod Bliejie a response to the Letter from the Director-General of TMR.
Outlining how disappointed we are that TMR has reiterated points from previous correspondence from up to ten years ago. That the points they raised are mostly outdated and many things have changed in this time. Plus that decisions have been made without consultation with SCC regarding infrastructure cost or changes. That we are still requesting a meeting with TMR to take them through our survey results and our unique community needs. Community consultation is required.
15 December 2020
Letter sent from MP Jarrod Bleijie in response to the Letter from the DG of TMR 15 October 2020.
8 January 2021
Response letter from Director-General TMR regarding a bus service into Kawana Forest.
Extracts from the attached document:
“However, I can only continue to advise that the Department of Transport and Main Roads’ TransLink Division (TransLink) is not considering introducing a bus service to Kawana Forest at this stage”.
“Providing a new service with new buses will require significant additional and ongoing financial investment due to the additional time, distance and fleet cost. It is acknowledged that extending
bus route 611 is a solution that will not increase the existing customer journey times. However, this
will require the same additional and ongoing financial investment as a new service”.
“I understand that TransLink network planners work closely with Sunshine Coast Council to
prioritise improvements to the public transport network and monitor residential growth”.
02 Feb 2021
TMR is still declining to meet with KAFRA to discuss options. KaFRA has shared this response with SCC Cr Peter Cox, to see if the third statement above has been previously discussed with SCC Transport team and what solutions SCC can see in assisting us and maybe leveraging off our transport levy from our SCC rates or look at trial service like what has previously been offered in other areas of the Sunshine Coast.
9 Feb 2021
Email from Cr Cox regarding the current status of the bus and that he is awaiting a detailed briefing from the SCC CEO regarding our requirements.
19 Feb 2021
Call from MP Jarrod Bliejie – he will write to request a ministerial meeting with Mark Bailey and TMR and Representatives of KF in Brisbane.
2 March 2021
Meeting with Cr Cox to discuss the current status of the bus. Meeting with the CEO still to happen. Discussed if our requirements could be raised with the SCC LGIP (Local Government Infrastructure Planning) team for prioritisation. Discussed using KF as a trial/pilot area for small electric hybrid feeder buses linking our estate to the major bus network hubs (and example of this might be a route from KF to hospital, Brightwater, to Kawana Station, Hospital, KF).
30 March 2021
Update from the office of MP Jarrod Bleijie
Jarrod has received a response from the Minister for Transport and Main Roads to his request for a meeting with advice that there was no capacity last sitting week to meet, but his office will be in touch if an opportunity arises to meet in the next few sitting weeks.
Jarrod will be in touch again once he has received further meeting information from the Minister’s office.
31 March 2021
Update from Cr Cox 31 March:
I was due to have another meeting with Jason Hunt MP tomorrow afternoon, however that meeting has been postponed due to this week’s covid restrictions.
Furthermore, I was expecting to have a Divisional Tour with the CEO in April, where I was going to drive her to the estate and highlight your concerns. Unfortunately I’ve now been advised that this has been delayed until early June.
In relation to the Mass Transit community engagement, which was expected to commence yesterday, this is now rescheduled to commence from late April. Whilst I’m yet to see any finalised program, there’ll be plenty of opportunities for Kawana Forest residents to participate, both online and in-person at the pop-up sessions. I’d also recommend that KaFRA put in a detailed submission once you’ve accessed the information.
13 April 2021
| MP Jason Hunt – emailed 13 April
KaFRA emailed Jason Hunt MP to meet regarding bus Transport. Got a response 16 April from the EA, who said she has requested some info from TMR and was waiting on their response. She had attended PLC and was surprised still no transport. She also quoted that state gov is investing $7.5mill to match SCC contribution for a public transport plan in the region. She asked if we had contacted TMR/State MP for Kawana prior to contacting them. 16 April 2021 – KaFRA responded with the following background information: For the past ten years we have been trying to get a bus service for the estate. We conducted the survey six months ago, based on feedback from SCC Cr Baberowski, that if we wanted to pursue Bus Services for our estate that we need to prove we had a demand. That is why we conducted the survey. It cost our NFP $100 to conduct the survey via survey monkey. Once the survey was done, we presented the results to Cr Cox, and prior to the election to both MP Jarrod Bleijie and Labour candidate Bill Redpath (who said he would arrange a meeting between us and Mark Bailey). Cr Cox still hasn’t had his 1:1 with the CEO where he planned to take her for a drive around his electorate and discuss our needs. Bill Redpath did not arrange a meeting. MP Jarrod Bliejie has sent two letters to TMR Neil Scales asking for them to meet with our committee so we can discuss our needs and results of the survey. This has been denied. Jarrod has also requested a ministerial meeting, so KAFRA can meet with Mark Bailey (back in mid-February), however nothing has come of it. From what we have been advised TMR have not spoken to SCC about our specific request. The letters from TMR Neil Scales and the reasons for why they won’t provide a bus service are inaccurate (I’m happy to talk you though each of these). Letter 1 Letter 2 from TMR This last letter stated “However, I can only continue to advise that the Department of Transport and Main Roads’ TransLink Division (TransLink) is not considering introducing a bus service to Kawana Forest at this stage.” You can find a timeline of activities we have undertaken and copies of the letters we have received from TMR on our website. We are now six months down the track with no pathway forward. http://www.kafra.org.au/kawana-forest-community-transport-needs-survey-results-and-next-steps/ We know that funding has been set aside for the region with an equal contribution from SCC and State Government and that public consultation will get underway soon (28 April). My concern is that the public consultation will be looking at a broad-brush approach and looking for a wider public transport strategy in the future. We are looking for a more immediate solution with a very small outlay of funding to support the addition to one extra stop on an existing route or trial new smaller hydro bus servicing our estate and others that currently don’t have access to public transport. We are not asking for a bus to loop through the streets of our estate, we are asking for one stop outside the PLC school. |
30 April 2021
Email to Cr Cox prior to our committee meeting asking the following questions:
- Mass Transit/New planning scheme (Peter – how might any of these five options benefit Kawana Forest)
- Has a date been set with CEO for drive through – will it be prior to public consultation finishing on MT
- Did you end up meeting with Jason Hunt?
- In the meeting you had with KaFRA via phone 2 March– you took an action to investigate with Nick Cooney –the manager of SCC LGIP (Local Gov Infrastructure Plan). To ask about how engagement between TMR and SCC happens and what is in plan and if KF bus transport could be highlighted. Also whether the SCC transport team had any notes of KF bus requirements.
12 May 2021
Update from MP Jason Hunt Office:
Sorry It’s taken so long to get a response from the Transport Minister’s office – I have been asking them to investigate this matter properly for us again thru Translink after their last review in Dec 2020.
Here’s what they’ve found:
- The Department of Transport and Main Roads’ TransLink division (TransLink) acknowledges the Kawana Forest Residents Association’s request for bus services to the Kawana Forest area.
- TransLink receives many requests for additional bus services. These requests must be considered and prioritised against competing needs across the state and levels of available funding.
- The opportunity to provide a public transport option for Kawana Forest is constrained due to its poorly connected road network.
- It’s acknowledged that extending route 611 which terminates at Sunshine Coast University Hospital (SCUH) is a solution that will not increase existing customer journey times, however this will require additional and ongoing financial investment for this service to be extended.
- Given the competing priorities for public transport service growth, TransLink is unable to commit to the additional investment required to extend route 611 to Kawana Forest Estate or implement a trial with new technology to provide service to this community at this time.
It seems to me that with the current constraints on state budget and funding, TMR unfortunately has prioritised areas in greater need.
I’d say this is also in light of the fact that we are currently looking in to alternative transport options for the Coast, so band-aid fixes are unsustainable at this time with such a limited budget.
Unfortunately as we are in Caloundra we don’t have the authority and power to get the Minister to a different electorate for a meeting. So, If you would like to take the matter further I would recommend emailing the Minister’s office directly at transportandmainroads@ministerial.qld.gov.au to request a meeting with the Transport Minister and present him with your case, survey and findings.
You can even call his ministerial office directly on (07) 3719 7300
Also, considering you have numbers on your side, you can table petitions in State Parliament with the support of your local member – follow this link to find out more on how you can do so –
https://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/work-of-assembly/petitions
I really am disappointed that we couldn’t help you more with this issue but please let me know if you have more questions or anything more we can ask from TMR regarding this.
13 May 2021
KaFRA community update #1
14 May 2021
KaFRA community update #2
18 May 2021
Email correspondence from KaFRA to MP Jason Hunts Office (in response to their message 12 May 2021).
Yes these statements 1-4 are what we have been hearing from TMR for some time now. As you will be aware after attending school at PLC #3 is incorrect, Kawana Forest is very well connected to the road network.
I note that they say that TMR are looking to prioritise other areas that have a greater need. However I would respectfully challenge this (see images below to support this). The new mass transit options being promoted by Sunshine Coast Council and seemingly supported by the Transport Minister only allow for five scenarios that only cover a 13 KM stretch, that already has the most extensive public transport servicing the area in comparison to the rest of the Sunshine Coast and the cost expectations of this proposal is upwards of 2 billion dollars. I’m assuming that this will mean many years of no other budget being available to areas like Caloundra and Kawana Forest. We are only asking to be provided with one stop at the entry of our estate, which would be a drop in the ocean in comparison to this big spend focusing on one area.
The CAMCOS could be another solution for us but, without the backing of Infrastructure Australia, it has been blocked from proceeding. They actually have proposed a stop directly outside our estate. (Obviously this was based on studies that the numbers of potential users are there to require this stop.
A bus stop for Kawana Forest is not a band-aid fix, as we don’t have a service to band-aid. We are asking to be provided with a vital service to:
- Get young kids into jobs (jobs they can’t get without public transport or parents in cars to get them there)
- Get our hospital staff to work safely without adding to the congestion in the 2.4 km stretch
- Get our elderly retired residents to buy groceries, attend hospital appointments and keep them connected in the community
- Get kids to training or game day at the new junior AFL club which has been relocated here by SCC. Without public transport, parents have to drive them – more cars on the road
- Get Sunshine Coast Council employees that live in the estate to work, with no parking being provided at the new Maroochydore CBD
We are passionate about having a connected community and providing the same opportunities that other areas of the Sunshine Coast have.
Please consider the whole of the Sunshine Coast when looking to implement a transport solution and how might we be able to better spend $2 billion dollars. What is in it for Hinterlands, Caloundra, North of Maroochydore River? So much more could be done for a better solution.
What we need are people in positions of leadership to advocate for us, our people and our needs. Without public transport the following flow-on impacts will happen:
- Unemployment of our youth
- Four car households for families in already congested streets
- Cars will still be driving where the new proposed Mass Transit Solution is implemented as it will be cost-prohibitive for them to park at the hospital to use the service
- Fewer youth being able to access a healthy active lifestyle (AFL, Soccer fields ) without a parent being able to drive them
- Cars parking along Creekside Boulevard to get access to the bus.
- Safety risk to residents (including youth and elderly) walking after hours out of the estate 2.4 km to the nearest bus stop along areas with no/limited street lighting.
Below you will see two pictures from the SCMT options analysis working draft page 169, 170 which show the congestion (in the heaviest colours red and black, right outside the entry to our estate), looking at the map it is one of the top 3 areas of congestion. It has greater congestion than the proposed Mass Transit Corridor. This could be reduced immediately by a bus servicing our estate.
We ask you to kindly consider supporting us even though we fall outside your electorate.
18 May 2021
Update from MP Jason Hunt Office:
They have contacted Minister Bailey’s office to organise a meeting between KaFRA, MP Hunt and Minister Bailey. We are awaiting a meeting date.
19 May 2021
MP Jarrod Bleijie contacted us to advise we have a meeting scheduled with the Minister Mark Bailey scheduled for Thursday 27 May 1.30pm.
27 May 2021
Today President Glenn Smith and Secretary Alana McEwen attended Brisbane Parliament House to meet with Minister Mark Bailey, Translink representatives and MP Jarrod Bleijie. I was great to meet face to face to discuss our community needs and look at how we could overcome any barriers. We had a very good discussion as we took them through our slide pack which highlighted our:
- community public transport needs
- our connectivity to major roads
- the diversity of our community
- how it has grown over the past 10 years
- our survey findings
- the location of our closest bus stops being 1.7km away or 22 mins from the back of our estate
- Congestion heat maps from 2016 v predicted 2041, which shows outside the entry to our estate is one of the top 5 congested areas on the coast
- 656 private vehicles exit our estate within a 1 hour period each morning
- Projected Population rates from 2016 v predicted 2041, with Meridan Plains being one of the highest
- Current public school bus usage, 9 buses entered the estate within 1 hour, 19 students boarded a single bus (would have to be one of the highest serviced school bus stops on the coast
- Our proposed bus route (adding 1 stop to the start and end of journey) Bus #611, which will give a direct connection to hospital and Maroochydore and connections to Uni and Caloundra
We now look forward to hearing how things may progress from here.
