He said short-term politics had led to a decade-long delay to Cross River Rail, delays in effectively using Victoria Bridge, no action since 2008 on a proposed alternative to Moggill Road and ugly delays to Brisbane's new trains. "Our system maximises short-term political opportunism and populism," Professor Heywood said. "Democracy is a damn good thing, but these examples prove we've got to do bit more to make it work." With individual levels of government each proposing their own projects, Professor Heywood said the co-ordination was sadly lacking. “I would say that it was a series of extremely well-funded and ambitious, piecemeal solutions,” he said.

Professor Heywood said Greater Brisbane needed a return to a cross-industry model used in 1989, which produced the Brisbane Traffic Study. That study, championed by then-lord mayor Sallyanne Atkinson, included input from state government traffic planners, road users, university specialists and design institutes to collaboratively develop future traffic solutions. Ultimately, its recommendations resulted in the Goodwill Bridge (2001), Eleanor Schonell Bridge (2006), the Kurilpa Bridge (2009) and kick-started the SEQ Busway network and the duplication of the Gateway Bridge in 2012. Professor Heywood recommended a new metropolitan traffic study assess: The pros and cons of turning Brisbane’s Victoria Bridge into a public and active transport-only bridge;

The pros and cons of a proposed pedestrian bridge from Brisbane’s new casino across to South Bank;

RACQ’s ambitious Bridging Brisbane plan, where 4600 residents suggested priorities for new river crossings; and

Better cross-river links between Brisbane’s fast-growing outer eastern and western suburbs, revisiting the western bypass concept.

The opening of Indooroopilly's Walter Taylor toll bridge in 1936. Credit:John Oxley Library Professor Heywood said it was time for the three levels of government, along with private industry and other stakeholders, to collectively reassess the next traffic projects over the next 18 months. “I know it seems a delay, but when you think how long we have been having these problems (slowing travel times), that isn’t too long,” he said. Professor Heywood proposed the following organisations develop a new metropolitan traffic study: The Department of Transport and Main Roads;

Brisbane City Council;

The federal government;

The Planning Institute of Australia;

The Royal Australian Institute of Architects and the Institute of Landscape Architects;

The Australian Institute of Traffic Planning and Management;

RACQ;

Bicycling Queensland; and

The Council of Mayors (SEQ).

Fairfax Media has asked these organisations their views, which will be published in due course. As it stands, Brisbane City Council is updating its Brisbane Transport Study, while the state government updates transport in its SEQ Regional Plan and the Council of Mayors (SEQ) has its own project list. Planning Institute of Australia Queensland urban planning committee chairman Stephen Smith said there was frustration among planners in many areas of Queensland infrastructure and engineering industry. However, he said the solution was not a new cross-industry planning study, but for the three levels of government to bluntly acknowledge longer time lines than “the next election”. “Overall, we've got to try to plan towards the city we want; not the city we are prepared to put up with,” Mr Smith said*.

Professor Heywood's views on Brisbane's bridge issues The proposed pedestrian bridge from new casino to South Bank should be reviewed, Professor Heywood said. “I think any transport study would look at it and go, ‘that looks interesting’, but I don’t think it would pass much scrutiny,” he said. Victoria Bridge makes an excellent green bridge, Professor Heywood said, but should not be overloaded. “In theory, it’s a good idea in a perfect location for the city’s newest green bridge. However, traders along Melbourne Street and people using South Bank Parklands should be intensively consulted," he said.

“People who live in outer Brisbane and in the suburbs around the metropolitan inner-city may well have some need for access to the cultural complexes and South Bank Parklands via that bridge.” Professor Heywood suggested an alternative. “The [Brisbane Metro] idea is to take buses from a subterranean bus station at South Bank to a subterranean bus tunnel under King George Square and the best way of doing that would be by using a tunnel," he said. “I’m not saying that is the complete and absolute answer, I’m saying that should be looked at as one of the options.” Professor Heywood said Brisbane needed a new cross-river car bridge between Balmoral and Hamilton and more cross-river lanes between Jindalee and Kenmore, where the Centenary Bridge had four lanes, and between Indooroopilly and Chelmer, where the Walter Taylor Bridge struggled to cope.

“But of course that takes us straight to the overall bigger issue, which is to see what their ‘offsite consequences’ will be,” he said. Professor Heywood said it was time to mirror the effectiveness of the Gateway Motorway with a similar traffic route in Brisbane's western suburbs. "The Gateway speeds traffic from the south, from the Gold Coast through Brisbane and north up towards the Sunshine Coast," he said. “I mean there is now a very interesting case for an outer western bypass linking up out past Brookfield and The Gap up towards the north. “It would almost replicate the great virtues of the Gateway Arterial."