A city icon - Enhancing tourism

Some cities have natural icons such as Cape Town’s Table Mountain and others have man made icons such as Sydney’s Opera House. A few cities have transport systems which have become iconic, London’s Tube, Vancouver’s Sky Train and Melbourne’s Trams.

The Gold Coast has unmatched surf, beaches and hinterland, but its transport system needs a major improvement. Market research indicates that convenient transport is a key driver of tourism satisfaction. Thus one way or another Gold Coast will ultimately have to have a new public transport system if it is to survive as a major tourist destination.

Light Rail gives the city the opportunity to create a new transport system which can have its own unique identity and be among the first cities in the world to offer 100% GreenPower travel.

The vehicles themselves can have a Gold Coast theme with a unique design. The vehicles shown here are those designed for the city of Marseilles in France. The brief was to create an image which reflected Waves and Porpoises. Marseilles now owns this design. The Gold Coast could take a similar approach and create its own design of sleek vehicles, aesthetically pleasing and custom branded.

Around the world light rail has had a stimulating impact on urban and commercial growth. The tourist experience can be enhanced by pedestrian precincts which create a Piazza environment. In Europe Light Rail provides a transport system able to traverse such areas with safety thus increasing the variety and vitality of the city. Part of the success of this coexistence between light rail and pedestrians lies in the predictability of rail guidance and pedestrians quickly learn where to walk.

This raises the possibility of creating new pedestrian precincts on the Gold Coast which will additionally have a transport service in their heart. Such areas would give a new image and charm to the city and perhaps be responsible for the rebirth of some Gold Coast areas now congested with traffic and in need of a renaissance.