AtD wrote:Just out of curiosity, how successful have the Brisbane and Sydney
airport links been? I remember reading somewhere the PPP that built the Sydney link collapsed and has since been taken over by a major bank. You have to pay a hefty fee just for getting off at those stations, on top of your normal fare.
I'm sure someone like AG knows better.
The Sydney and Brisbane
Airport rail links have come up with quite different performances since they were opened to traffic in 2000 and 2001 respectively. Even with lower passenger numbers at Brisbane
Airport, the
rail link to it has been more successful than the Sydney
Airport link. The Brisbane
Airport Line was funded by a small number of businesses including Macquarie Bank and ABN AMRO under a BOOT scheme. The cost of one way travel from the Brisbane CBD to Brisbane
Airport is $13, for a distance of about 15km, and the service permanently runs limited express to Brisbane
Airport (stops only at Eagle Junction north of the main city stations and Bowen Hills). It's quite competitive compared to other forms of transport leading into the
airport now, as the roads leading in and out of the
airport have been suffering from congestion in recent times, hence the planning and commencement of the new Gateway Motorway upgrade and new
Airport Link leading from inner northern Brisbane. The train line also has quite quick travel times to the Gold Coast as most trains from Brisbane
Airport run right through to the Gold Coast as express services. It operated at a loss for a few years after opening, partly due to lower than expected passenger numbers resulting from 911, but has been operating with a profit since 2005.
The Sydney
Airport rail link is operated differently to the Brisbane
Airport link. Kingsford Smith
Airport is a lot closer to the Sydney CBD than the Brisbane
Airport is to the Brisbane CBD (less than 10km). A trip from Central to the Domestic Terminal costs about $13-14 IIRC, but the trip is quite slow as all
airport train services are always all station services, and passengers to the
airport compete for space with normal suburban commuters continuing through to the East Hills line. The four train stations on the
Airport Link (Green Square, Mascot, Domestic Terminal and International Terminal) have an extra charge on top of them called a GateFare, a charge simply for passing through the turnstiles at the train stations. It's not very competitive, partly due to the high price for such a slow service, and also heavy competition from the bus and taxi services serving Kingsford Smith
Airport. Also the M5 East Motorway and Southern Cross Drive makes travel times by car significantly quicker than by train. Westpac now owns the
Airport Link.