The Palaszczuk Government will work with the City of Gold Coast to investigate the potential for a 12 stop ferry service on the Broadwater and Nerang River using solar-powered catamarans.
The decision comes following a meeting in Brisbane earlier this week between Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey and City of Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate to discuss the proposal.
Mr Bailey said the meeting was positive, and he looked forward to seeing more detail of the council’s plan.
"While this is a council led proposal, I am always happy to hear about any projects that could improve public transport for Queenslanders," Mr Bailey said.
"Mr Tate has proposed a two-year trial for the ferry service, in partnership with the Department of Transport and Main Roads, Maritime Safety Queensland and Gold Coast Waterways Authority.
"I’ve asked my department to now liaise with the City of Gold Coast and perform early investigations into how this plan could work.
"Importantly, residents who could be directly impacted will be kept informed as much as possible as we consider this potentially transformative public transport proposal."
Mr Tate said with the Gold Coast’s population booming, it was vitally important new public transport options were considered.
"We have seen incredible success with Gold Coast Light Rail, a whopping 33 per cent growth in patronage since Stage 2 came online in December last year," he said.
"That means less people are using their cars, leading to less congestion on our roads. Solar-assisted ferries will be our version of light-rail-on-water.
"We’ve calculated in the first stage of the ferry service between Surfers and Southport and the Spit may take about 3500 cars off the road daily, which could lead to further congestion reductions.
"I look forward to hearing the outcome of investigations now underway."
