It’s been nearly a decade of delays and cost blowouts, but the long-awaited Brisbane Metro has officially hit the streets. The council says it's the biggest change to the city's bus network in generations and will boost capacity by more than three million seats each year.
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00:00Marking the arrival of a new era in public transport.
00:09All aboard the Brisbane Metro.
00:12Despite the name, it's not a tram, or train, or underground.
00:17It's turn up and go time.
00:18It's time for mass rapid transit.
00:20Fast, frequent, fully electric, and futuristic.
00:25The bendy buses are double the size, carrying double the passengers.
00:31That is 170 cars that are off the road, which is great for the future of the environment.
00:36Running along the M2 from UQ to the RBWH, replacing route 66, they'll arrive every five
00:44minutes in peak hour.
00:46We are showing the world the potential that bus rapid transit has to solve congestion
00:51problems in big cities.
00:53Each will be named after a Queensland icon.
00:56I'm pleased to say that we've been able to name the vehicle Darren Lockyer.
01:00This city keeps growing, we're heading towards 2032, it's going to continue to grow.
01:05With the first passengers already on board.
01:08It was more comfortable, it was quieter, and I felt like I had more room, and it was more
01:14pleasant overall.
01:15Definitely a great day for transportation in Australia.
01:18Nine years in the making.
01:20First proposed as a Paris-style subway system.
01:23If we do nothing, the delays in public transport in this city are just going to grow.
01:30Only the names the same.
01:32The design revised, then plagued by delays and cost blowouts.
01:37The original price tag climbing to more than $1.5 billion.
01:41What we have today, in January 2025, is a bus running on an existing route, on an existing
01:50busway.
01:51A second service between Eight Mile Plains and Roma Street will start later this year.