OVERCROWDED and filthy trains, poor bus connections, expensive fares, infrequent services and packed water taxis are the top gripes listed by people frustrated with Redlands public transport.
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Lobby group Rail Back on Track released the survey responses this month, highlighting issues commuters believed needed to be fixed.
The results were published after Transport Minister Mark Bailey announced that south-east Queensland's train network would have a further 46,000 seats added to ease commuter congestion.
However, Rail Back on Track spokesman Robert Dow said cuts to train services two years ago due to driver shortages still affected commuters.
Survey respondents had graded train services across the network as satisfactory, a small jump from last year’s poor rating.
“Rail fail has had a devastating impact on the public's rating of rail overall, although rail has improved in overall rating from the low point last year,” Mr Dow said.
About 400 weekly train services were swiped from the network in October 2016, including 42 cut from the hard-hit Cleveland line, which has since been dubbed the “misery line”.
Passengers have long voiced concerns about unreliable, infrequent and congested train services. Those sentiments were again reflected in this year’s Rail Back on Track survey.
“(The) Cleveland line, which I use daily, is terrible – old trains, infrequent service and always overcrowded,” one survey respondent wrote.
“Trains are dirty and (there is) too much break down on that line. In general, public transport in our area is a total mess and unacceptable. Fares should be half of what we pay,” said another.
The state government introduced more six-carriage train services onto the Cleveland line last week to ease congestion.
The rollout of 37 New Generation Rollingstock trains had enabled the seating boost, freeing up existing three-carriage trains which could be paired to double capacity on services.
Some Cleveland line commuters were concerned that not enough services were being scheduled outbound from the city, also calling for line duplication between Cleveland and Manly to stop delays.
“This has made no difference to services after 5pm leaving from the city. Cleveland line is not called the misery line … for nothing,” one person wrote.
Poor connections between buses bound for Redland Bay and trains at Cleveland, infrequent bus services to and from the Redland Bay marina and ferries not matching with buses also caused frustrations for islanders.
“No buses to and from Redland Bay marina after 6pm on Sunday night, making it hard to get back to the islands by public transport,” one person said.
“Island ferries are increasingly crowded at times because of population growth. More services needed in the timetable to cater for late shift-workers and also early afternoon.”
A lack of space on buses for people who used a mobility scooters and absence of recharging facilities on Southern Moreton Bay Islands also caused grief.
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