Described by Transport Minister Mark Bailey as “one of the ugliest buildings in Brisbane”, the run-down Brisbane Transit Centre on Roma Street will be demolished in 2020, to make way for the interchange.
He said the 650-metre busway would be located directly under the Roma Street station plaza.
“Queenslanders are backing public transport, with a record 182 million trips taken across the south east last financial year, including an average of 19,000 people using the current Roma Street bus station each day,” Mr Bailey said.
“Once Cross River Rail is operational, 36,000 passengers are expected to use Roma Street every day to transfer between buses and trains, which is why we’re upgrading this important hub, taking hundreds of cars off the road and easing congestion.
Ms Trad said the bus/train interchange would support crowds as large as 20,000 travel to and from events at the proposed Brisbane Live arena.
The entertainment centre would sit on an elevated structure above existing railways, road and property at Roma Street.
Queensland will be “going it alone” with funding the $5.4 billion Cross River Rail project after the Coalition failed to provide any help in the federal budget.
Federal Labor promised to give $2.24 billion if they won government, but that went up in smoke with Saturday’s electoral defeat.
But Ms Trad said Queensland had not included the $2.24 billion promised by federal Labor in the 2019-20 Queensland budget for the Cross River Rail project.
