I do believe in giving credit where it’s due. So, I will say that, from my limited exposure to it, the newly opened Adelaide Street tunnel seems to be a good thing that is entirely fit for purpose.
Oh, and 50-cent fares are amazing.
It’s just a shame that so many frustrating things remain when it comes Brisbane’s bus network. I’m sure everyone who catches buses has their own list of grievances, but number one for me involves the indicator boards at the Cultural Centre station — because they never seem to get it right.
Buses that are said to be there NOW have either already left or are yet to arrive, and those that are said to be one minute away could arrive anything up to 15 minutes later (by which time, the vehicle is probably the next bus on the same route).
Many, many times I’ve been left in the dark about the actual whereabouts of the outbound no. 100 bus. And there’s no excuse for that because Cultural Centre is only the second stop for that particular service, which begins at Queen Street station.
If the bus leaves the station, it can only be delayed by the lights at the corner of William Street or a queue of buses crawling across the Victoria Bridge — in which case, I’d be able to see it. But, even when it’s said to be just one minute away, and there is no queue over the bridge, it’s often nowhere to be seen and takes forever to arrive.
How can they get that wrong?
There’s a third-party app that does the job of tracking Brisbane buses much better than the official system. And, of course, if you catch an Uber, you can know exactly where your car before it arrives and at every stage of the journey.
Why doesn’t Brisbane City Council have the means to track its own vehicles and accurately convey that information on the display boards designed for that very purpose?
If you can answer this question, or you have another public-transport observation, please let me know!
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Hadley: I shall return (maybe)
Former king of the shock jocks Ray Hadley has told Sky News host Sharri Markson that he’d return to radio if John Singleton buys the Nine Radio network.
But there are caveats. For starters, Nine hasn’t yet officially decided if the stations, which include 2GB, 3AW, 6PR and 4BC, will be sold. And if they are for sale, it’s not clear who the buyer would be.
“If Singo buys it, I’m back for sure,” Hadley said. “If other people buy it, I don’t know because I don’t know them, and I haven’t spoken to them.”
The question related specifically to 2GB, so it still remains to be seen and heard whether he’d also pop up on 4BC again. The Brisbane station recently lost its Mornings presenter, Bill McDonald, who was its best ratings performer in the most recent ratings survey.
And while it seems Hadley — who acknowledged that he’s still being paid by Nine Radio even though he’s not on the air — is doing OK, not so some of the journalists working for Southern Cross Austereo (SCA).
The group that owns the Triple M and Today networks — and is in the process of merging with Seven West Media — has announced more jobs cuts in its news department.
P.S.
Would you listen to a radio station that played the hits of the 1950s, 60s and 70s and had a DJ roster with an average age of 72? Plenty of people in the UK do. Would the Boom Radio model work on the commercial airwaves here in Australia? I examine that question here.