RDA Sunshine Coast held a forum in November in the hope it would lead to more commuters abandoning their cars and embracing a more efficient, cost effective and sustainable transport system.
RDA Sunshine Coast CEO Darrell Edwards said the region faced many transport challenges.
“Population growth and driver behaviour will continue to contribute to increased congestion and frustration,” he warned.
He said infrastructure was inadequate to cope with the demands of a rapidly increasing population, which was expected to grow to about 514,000 by 2036. While we wait for the delivery of infrastructure we can all reduce our congestion footprint by better planning of our trips and adopting alternate transport solutions.
“Currently private motor vehicles are used for most trips on the Sunshine Coast, and this car use is growing faster than total employment in the region,” he said.
“This places ongoing pressure on the local and state-controlled road network to manage demand during peak periods,” he said.
Possible solutions discussed were electric bikes, public transport incentives to encourage behavioural change, ride-sharing and car-pooling.
Mr Edwards said over 80% of Sunshine Coast residents used their car to travel to and from work.
He said unless this trend changed, there would be unrelenting pressure for more and wider roads with a loss of natural areas and amenities.
Mr Edwards said he hoped the Smart Transport Forum would be a pilot for a series of forums to be rolled out across the Sunshine Coast in the New Year.