A new ACT Government report shows how the first stage of light rail – the City to Gungahlin line – has attracted new passengers to public transport, gotten cars off the road, and encouraged urban renewal along the previously tired Northbourne Avenue corridor.
You can read the full report here. It’s great to see the case for why light rail has been so successful set out so neatly. Here are some highlights:
Passengers love it
With roughly 14,000 boardings every weekday, it is clear that light rail attracts passengers with its fast, frequent and comfortable journeys. This matches the pre-COVID patronage levels, despite people having significantly changed travel patterns now.
And the surveys show just how much people love it: 98% of passengers surveyed are satisfied with the ease of using light rail, and 95% would recommend it to their friends and family. This is a great sign of a quality transport product.
Importantly, in a 2020 survey, 43% of light rail passengers reported that they had not used public transport in the ACT before light rail commenced operations. This is a remarkable figure, showing just how useful light rail is in attracting new passengers to the public transport network.
It’s taken cars off the road
Separately, light rail has also had the desired effect of getting people out of their cars. Traffic data show big reductions in vehicle numbers along Northbourne Avenue: by as much as 20% in the morning peak. This is a great sign that light rail can really change the way we get around, and brings benefits to passengers and also those who don’t use it.
It also shows what we might be able to do with the Northbourne corridor now it has fewer cars on it. Pedal Power ACT’s campaign for separated cycle lanes proposes exactly the sort of thing we need to be doing as Northbourne Avenue moves from being a place for moving cars around, to a place for people. Pedal Power has suggested cutting it back from 6 lanes to 4. With vehicle traffic already reduced, it’s very clear we can do this.
The Northbourne corridor is more vibrant because of light rail
But even without these changes, it’s very clear that light rail is having the desired effect in encouraging investment and renewal along the corridor. These “land use benefits” were a major justification for the project, and it’s good to see this playing out in the area adjacent to the light rail line, including:
- $2.3b worth of construction since 2016
- 6,100 new homes
- 4% average annual population increase (compared to a Territory-wide 2.5%)
This is also reflected in the much higher land values in the corridor compared to the rest of the ACT – see the graph above. While land value shouldn’t be the goal of a light rail project, it’s a good way of measuring how residents and businesses see it as desirable, and that’s definitely proven to be the case.
It’s running like a dream
Finally, the report has an excellent overview of how light rail is operating and the arrangement between Canberra Metro and the ACT Government to cover operations and maintenance. We’ve already reported on the financial arrangements (and how it really doesn’t cost the Territory that much for a 100 year asset), but this report shows just how smoothly light rail is running.
It’s not just the 99.98% on-time running (compared to 75% for our buses), but many other things too – like how Canberra Metro ensures gardens and stops are kept clean and tidy. For example, each year the ACT Government conducts around 170 regular inspections of stops, LRVs and landscaping sections to ensure Canberra Metro is meeting its contractual requirements. The report identifies only a handful of non-compliances, all of which were rectified within the 2-24 hour target time.
It’s good to see this arrangement working so well. Some cities have reported mixed results with integrating private operators into their transport network, but the success of the past 5 years of light rail in the ACT shows how, with the right accountability measures in place, a seamless outcome can be achieved that works for passengers, the Territory and the operator alike.
What are we waiting for?
All of this confirms what we’ve been saying all along: light rail is the best thing to happen to our public transport system in a long time. It attracts new passengers, incentivises urban renewal, and gets cars off the road.
More importantly, the report confirms that we cannot afford any delays in rolling out light rail to the rest of Canberra. It offers concrete benefits for all Canberrans, regardless of whether they use public transport, and will continue to shape our city for the better.
Light rail is a core element of our city’s liveability now and into the future. Let’s build more of it