WaterBUS community

Omnicalculator.com has a collection of "Every day life calculators" including a "Solar Panel Calculator" to estimate potential savings.

https://www.omnicalculator.com/ecology/solar-panel

Please leave your constructive feedback in the comments section below. Thank you.

Welcome to the Brisbane Waters WaterBUS Community!

The goal of our online discussion portal is to learn together and invest in productive relationships.

The discussion portal is organised into three main topics:

1. Announcements

2. Frequently asked questions

3. Library

Remember to read the Community Guidelines post under the topic "Announcements" before you post comments in this online discussion portal. We are here to support everyone by moderating the forum to these standards.

Please use the Community Feedback post under the topic "Announcements" for general questions, comments, and suggestions to improve the user experience.

Finally, remember to say hello to everyone in the comments section below.

Welcome aboard!

The Team 😊

Brisbane Waters WaterBUS

The goal of our online planning portal is to learn together and invest in productive relationships. Robust and vigorous debate of ideas is welcome.

Be Understanding

We're all in this together to create a welcoming environment. Let's treat everyone with respect. Healthy debates are natural and can be a lot of fun however self-reflection is required.

No Hate Speech or Bullying

Make sure everyone feels safe. Bullying of any kind is not allowed, and degrading comments about things like race, religion, culture, sexual orientation, gender or identity will not be tolerated.

No Irrelevant Promotions or Spam

Give more than you take to this community. Irrelevant promotions and deceptive links are not allowed.

Respect Everyone's Privacy

Being part of this community requires mutual trust. Authentic, expressive discussions make communities great, but may also be sensitive and private. What's shared in the community should stay in the community.

Enforcement

By taking part in the discussion you agree to follow the above guidelines. Moderators reserve the right to remove content for any reason and without explanation.

There are a number of ways you can contribute to the conversation:

1. Download the white paper and complete the online survey.

2. Subscribe to email updates for exclusive news, insights, and opportunities to get involved.

3. Become a member of the Brisbane Waters WaterBUS community to post comments, access the online forum, and more!

An incredible amount of effort spanning more than three decades has gone into the study and preparation and of the Brisbane Waters WaterBUS community project proposal. There is still much to be done.

We hope you find it as interesting and as useful as we did in researching it and bringing it to you.

Thank you for choosing to join us on this shared journey.

Sincerely,

The Team 😊

Brisbane Waters WaterBUS

The process of implementing a regional waterbus network will encourage our land-based counterparts to engage on the specific issues at hand.

Indeed land-based passenger transport will have an important role to play in plans to develop the Gosford Foreshore given the lack of car parking space and the anticipated increase in both pedestrian and vehicular traffic congestion.

While public plans for a Gosford Marina have been ongoing since 1997, they remain largely premature to the extent that a viable regional waterbus route between Woy Woy and the Gosford Waterfront has intrinsic planning priority.

If our largest population centre by both urban area and population density happens to be on The Peninsula then it only makes sense to meaningfully connect its residents to our regional capital.

Furthermore, this challenge will not be solved in any sustainable manner by widening our roads for more cars, electric or otherwise.

A regional waterbus network would also ensure that coastal communities without proximity to the rail network received priority waterborne access, point-to-point, to essential services via the only two geographical locations on the Central Coast where road, rail, and water all converge: Woy Woy and Wyong.

Our waterways on the Central Coast are regarded as a key regional asset and their sustainable management and use contribute to the quality of life for local communities.

A regional waterbus network would be operating primarily over smooth water and efforts to minimise potential disruption to local ecosystems, whether from coastal erosion, urban pollution, and waterside development pressure, deserve responsible public oversight.

Informed decision-making will also require a regional strategy to establish a coordinated perspective from which local community projects can then safely push-off and in turn lend back their support.

From our coastal plain to our hinterland, the Central Coast is comprised of a unique patchwork communities that collectively inform our regional identity.

In addition to supporting our land-based passenger transport system, the considered option of an affordable regional waterbus network would contribute to the renewal of our coastal communities, from the Brisbane Water in the south to the Tuggerah Lakes in the north.

Inherent benefits would include improved access to health, education, employment, freight, and other essential services.

Where we use the term "waterbus" rather than "ferry" it is because the former conveys an important maritime concept best explained by looking at the City of Brisbane in Queensland which happens to be situated on either side of the Brisbane River (not to be confused with the Brisbane Water in New South Wales). Ferries initially travelled cross-river until it became evident there was more value to offer commuters by travelling both upriver and down-river in the process, leading to the formation of a "maritime highway".

Given our preliminary observation that more than 75% of weekday peak hour congestion along Brisbane Water Drive is single passenger vehicular traffic, the considered option of an affordable domestic waterbus route supported by local bus routes is anticipated to be a welcome relief for both daily commuters and local businesses alike.

The underlying assumption here is that the real-dollar cost of owning and operating a private motor vehicle in Australia will inevitably increase with time despite the best efforts of our policy makers.

While also debatable, the timeline for the anticipated effects upon our consumer spending patterns will largely depend upon a number of external factors including the competitive demand for limited resources amongst the rapidly advancing economies of neighbouring India, China, and South East Asia.

Irrespective of our conclusions, it remains prudent of us as an emerging global city region to begin to think strategically and explore new and innovative ways of maintaining our current lifestyle well into the future and not at the continued expense of our living standards or our natural habitat.