Building on the success of the current West End – Teneriffe CityGlider service, Stones Corner, Woolloongabba and South Brisbane residents will soon benefit from a new CityGlider service.

The new CityGlider service will link Brisbane’s biggest and most historic sporting institutions – the Gabba and Lang Park (Suncorp) – via the increasingly popular food and entertainment precincts in-between.

Lord Mayor’s representative for the Gabba Ward Francis Quinlivan welcomed the announcement as part of an ongoing commitment by Lord Mayor Graham Quirk to improve inner-city / cross-city public transport services.

Mr Quinlivan said Council and the State Government had long recognised a rapid transit solution from the southern end of Woolloongabba through South Brisbane and the CBD and out to Fortitude Valley, Bowen Hills and Newstead was needed to link major residential precincts and the areas anticipated to experience the highest workplace growth.

“It is important for rapid transit service like the CityGlider to be up and running ahead of forecast growth in the innercity precincts because this will reduce the need for people to get into their cars – and unsustainable travel behaviour becomes entrenched,” he said.

Mr Quinlivan said Lord Mayor Graham Quirk aimed to have the service running from next financial year and would approach the Queensland Government to jointly fund the service.

“This second CityGlider service will travel from Stones Corner along Logan Road and through to Woolloongabba Busway and then onto the South East Busway via Mater Hospital, South bank and the Cultural Centre (Grey Street) and then across the William Jolly Bridge and out to Caxton Street and onto Paddington,” he said.

“The Lord Mayor’s second CityGlider service will take in Brisbane’s most distinctive destinations – providing longer-term economic benefits to businesses in areas such as Stones Corner, Woolloongabba, South Bank and Paddington.”

Mr Quinlivan said the new service would also be high frequency, leaving every five minutes during peak times and every ten to fifteen minutes off peak. It would operate as a 24-hour service on Friday and Saturday and 18-hour service on other days.

The first CityGlider services from West End to Newstead and Teneriffe began operation in April 2010 and, within its first year, the popular high-frequency bus service had carried 1.6 million passengers – about 60 per cent higher than forecast.

The maroon CityGlider is forecast to carry up to 500,000 passengers in its first year. The original CityGlider serviced 1.6 million passengers in its first 12 months, compared to a forecast of 650,000.