2017-03-13 GC - Attachment 1 to Item 5 - Draft Transport Strategy 2017-2027

Challenges
Some of the key transport challenges Noosa are summarised below.

Number of Visitors                                                    Congestion at peak times
In holiday seasons, on long weekends and coinciding                   Buses currently get stuck in congestion
with major events, the pressure on Noosa’s road                       during peak periods and offer no efficiency
network and car parking spaces becomes strained                       over the private car other than not having to
and open space gives way to parked cars.                              find a car park.
Data from Tourism Noosa indicates that in 2016,                       Regardless of how many people adopt
approximately 58% of all visitors to Noosa were                       alternative transport modes, it may not
day trip visitors. Currently, the vast majority of day                result in noticeably less cars on the road
visitors arrive by car.                                               because spare capacity and empty car
                                                                      parking spaces are soon filled by others.
Sunshine Coast and Moreton Bay Regional Councils
                                                                      Creating more capacity on the road
combined are forecast to grow by close to 437,000
                                                                      network and more car parking spaces in
residents over the next 25 years, to a combined
                                                                      key destinations can attract more people
2041 population of 1,150,000 (Draft SEQ Regional
                                                                      than the destinations can reasonably
Plan, 2016). This is likely to significantly increase the
                                                                      accommodate.
number of day visitors to Noosa.




Car Dependence                                                  Topography & Climate
For most people, driving a car is a way of life and             Noosa includes some significant hilly terrain which
their preferred mode of transport. Cars seem more               can be challenging for pedestrians and cyclists.
convenient and affordable than public transport                 Noosa’s subtropical climate is part of its attraction
although the true costs of running a car (purchase              as a place to live, however, at times the temperature
price, rego, maintenance, fuel etc.) are not always             is not conducive to active transport (walking and
considered when making a journey by car.                        cycling). Summer temperatures often rise above
A combined 44% of jobs in Noosa Shire are                       30 degrees and there are frequent rainy days.
within the retail, hospitality, accommodation, and              Reducing emissions from transport activity and
healthcare sectors. The nature of this work (shift              developing a resilient transport network will be
work, late hours) means that active transport                   needed to respond to energy risks and climate
(walking and cycling) may not be appropriate                    change.
and public transport is unlikely to be available.




Funding                                                     Shortfalls in services and infrastructure
Unlike other parts of South East                            Approximately one-third of Noosa’s population is in
Queensland, Noosa Shire is not reliant on                   the hinterland area with limited to no public transport
or predicting a high level of growth over                   services. The Noosa hinterland also has a higher
the next 20 years. Given the limitation                     proportion of young people aged 5-19 years.
on future development, the expectation                      The large TransLink buses, and also advertising on
for new infrastructure is also limited.                     buses, do not fit with the Noosa look and feel.
State investment in Noosa’s roads and                       A connected off-road pathway network is needed to
transport infrastructure, as a low growth                   cater for mobility scooters, cyclists and pedestrians.
area, will be dwarfed by investment                         Noosa’s many roundabouts can make it difficult to
further to the South.                                       safely cross the road on foot or by bike.
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