What started in summer 2025 as a three part series on assorted busways in South East Asia became five parts, ad now reaches its sequel and end with my opinion that the busways of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia are the best I came across on my travels in 2025. There are probably systems in SE Asia that I have not visited - it feels like Indonesia might have some - and I am definitely missing Adelaide's O-Bahn. Next time in Oz! It's amazing that the Brisbane system, which is now three distinct busways, only started operating in 2000.
- So, why Brisbane? The features I particularly like and why they are better than many other bus rapid transit (BRT) services or infrastructure...
- It can be used by all bus types: there is no need for special vehicles that have physical or optical guidance, that have a different boparding height, doors on the off side etc. Literally any Brisbane city bus can use the system;
- It is can be easily accessed by many bus routes: there are numerous access and egress points so if the busway offers a good option for accessing the city centre, a bus route can access it and use it;
- It is wide and has space: the roadways can be comfortably used by buses travelling at speed. It has not been designed to be millimetres wider than a bus, like so much other bus infrastructure (particularly in the UK);
- It has proper stations and a feeling of 'place'. It does not just have simple bus shelters, it has stations with the platforms and full length canopies you'd expect to find on a metro or well designed light rail system;
- Fares are the same as the rest of the Brisbane bus network (which at the time of visiting in July 2025 were capped at 50c a ride, and the same for the urban rail network);
- When the going gets tough, Brisbane got building. There is a vast underground network of tunnels and stops in the city centre. Many other cities would return to on street running at this point with the risk of delay that brings; and
- It has an 'anchor' service. A fleet of double articulated electric 'lighTram25' buses built by Hess (Switzerland) operate high frequency, high capacity services M1 and M2 on the busway system.
There's a couple of things I didn't like....
- The vast city centre network of underground stops didn't feel the biggest or most well lit, and could be quite narrow, which will bring a fear or risk of anti-social behaviour or personal attack. It felt a little like Newcastle's (UK, not NSW) Eldon Square bus station in the early 1990s!;
- The standard livery on a Brisbane city bus looks like the front nearside window has been smashed and taped up: I'm told it's supposed to be a kite!; and
- At the time of my visit, the busy bus:train interchange at Roma Street station was undergoing construction works (for the forthcoming Brisbane Metro) and access to the busway platforms was lengthy and felt something of an afterthought.
From the album of holiday snaps.....
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| Each busway station has grade segregated access via stairs and lift (usuallu) |
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| Overview of a station showing platforms that can handle 2-3 buses each and a lane for other vehicles to pass. Hess lighTram25 vehicles operating M1 services are at each platform. |
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| Where necessary there is both the opportunity to access normal roads, turn buses around and layover. |
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| Network maps could be described as complicated, but that reflects the number of services that benefit from the journey time savings offered by the busway. |
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| Entrance to a suburban city centre busway station is more akin to an underground railway station. |
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| Services are varied and regular at all times of the day. This is Roma Street station. |
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| The Metro M1 and M2 services only started on 30th June 2025. |
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| Regular Brisbane city bus operating on the busway. This shows the weird livery adopted that is supposed to be a kite over the the nearside window but initially looked to be like a broken window had been taped up! |
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| Regular Brisbane city bus operating on the busway. |
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| Regular Brisbane city bus operating on the busway. As well as regular 12m buses, longer 15m tri-axle rigids and 18m articulated buses are used, the latter shown here. |
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| Regular Brisbane city bus operating on the busway. |
