Local Infrastructure Provision

Local Infrastructure Provision

Hosting the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast offers an opportunity for raising the city’s profile, attracting investment, and inspiring the local community. However, there is a transportation challenge for more than a million fans, media personnel, athletes, and games officials (Yigitcanlar, 2013). Therefore, there is a need for targeted investment in transport and utility as well as meticulous planning to incorporate environmental sustainability measures. The Gold Coast transport network should be well prepared not only to save on cost during 2018 Commonwealth Games, but also to ensure a return on investment.

The authorities should optimize every dollar that is spent on campaigns on travel behavior change and games related infrastructure. Besides, these transport investment should correlate with the city's long-term goal of minimizing or eliminating the use of non-renewable forms of energy to minimize carbon emissions the atmosphere. Sustainable transport and utility development imply reconsideration of temporary infrastructure development. Long after the conclusion of Commonwealth Games, the utilities, and transport networks should be permanently beneficial to the locals, hence legacy creation for the city.

It is worth noting that the transport experience for the visitors and the local population during the games is of paramount importance. The government authorities, city officials and the stakeholders must work together to demonstrate to the attendees that how accessible, convenient, easy, and inexpensive sustainable travel can get. There should be a show of readiness to capitalize on positive experiences through improvement of transport and utility services before, during, and after the Commonwealth Games so that people can adopt a greener strategy of using public means of transport, riding or walking instead of using highly pollutant cars.

Potential Legacies

There is a proposed development of integrated traffic management center to ensure smooth flow of traffic by better coordination of city traffic signals and obtaining more capacity out of the existent road network after and during the games. In addition, the city council should cooperate with the state government to ensure the development of new park-and-rides in preparation for 2018 Commonwealth Games to ensure that the city's residents reap the benefits of adopting greener and sustainable means of transport.

The state government should also make provisions for faster movement spectators and games family to key venues. After the games, the ensuing opportunities from this arrangement should be explored for priority retention on these routes. Building new bike paths and footpaths will guarantee the accommodation of increased transport as the games continue. It is the first step towards the integration of non-carbon emitting modes of transport to the existing system in Gold Coast city. Furthermore, city council officials should work with employers to ensure the promotion of public means of transport, telecommuting, and off-peak travel to deflate pressure on the city transport network during and after the games. If these changes are applied permanently across Gold Coast, chances are that the air will be cleaner and traffic congestion will be minimized significantly (Black et al., 2012).

            Post-Commonwealth Games legacy should entail the reuse of land to ensure greener outcome for the city years after the event. Thus, the city authorities should endorse plans to design recyclable multipurpose venues and to forge for creation o environmentally conscious and robust infrastructure.  The local community should be involved in the development of transport and utility infrastructure to ensure social sustainability. If the local diverse communities are involved and consulted during the development, it is probable that they will be empowered to protect and to encourage further environmental-sensitive policies.

Environmental Sustainability

Local infrastructure provision should be themed on environmental sustainability because it is a vital aspect of modern development. Mostly, environmental sustainability is based on the condition of the natural environment and the consequences infrastructure development has on its condition. Biodiversity should be a first criterion whereby Gold Coast city engineers should foster expansion and conservation of natural habitats, development of open space, and protection of wildlife. Therefore, the constructed transport and utility should incorporate landscape design and habitat creation to minimize its effect on wildlife habitat and to encourage environmental rejuvenation (O’Brien et al., 2013).

Moreover, the environmental sustainability strategy should extend to sustainable transport such as public and active transport options, and how they eventually connect across the city. A fundamental priority of transport and utility development should be the reduction of carbon emissions. Some of the indicators of a stride towards this goal include reduction or elimination of a need to travel, provision of viable alternatives to the utilization of private cars, prioritization of cycling and walking, and increased connectivity between different green modes of transport in Gold Coast.

Electric Bus System

Electric bus project focuses on environmental sustainability and economic development. However, its construction entails numerous challenges and uncertainties. Economically, electric bus is beneficial to the local design and construction industry incorporated into this project. The Gold Coast economy stimulus and that of these industries will rise significantly because of the electric bus system. Job creation is also a major boost for the local economy both indirectly to suppliers and to the construction industry. There is also an opportunity for the government to reap indirect revenue why can then be reverted back in the improvement of environmental conditions within the city. The electric bus system will improve on the existing connectivity in Gold Coast city thus lowering the cost of living.

The private and public stakeholders should support electric bus system development given the laid down environmental strategies and the overall benefits to the city and Commonwealth Games planners. However, achievement of post environmental strategy will only happen through overcoming prevalent uncertainties to the planning phase. Some of the major environmental strategies include averting wetland and waterway and approval for clearance of native vegetation from the concerned council departments. The impact on the waterways can be reduced by lifting the infrastructure of the ground, constant management and monitoring of wetlands, reduced car use to minimize emission, and replanting of trees along the waterways to ensure environmental offsets. Strategies like these offer a clear reflection of planning frameworks that need to be implemented not only on the Gold Coast but also throughout Queensland by delegating the projects to appropriate departments of state to minimize environmental degradation. Development of electric bus transport system for commonwealth games is in line with the need for improvement of public transport in the city to conserve the environment.

Recent statistics indicate that only 4% of total Gold Coast population use public means of transport. In fact, more than 90% of the demography in Queensland uses private cars as means of transport, hence amplifying the contribution of the transport industry to global warming and choking air. Already, the city has a plan of reducing overdependence on private means of transport by more than 20% by 2021. It implies that greener strategies have to be developed before 2018 commonwealth games. The long-term viability of electric bus system includes the growth of the city because the system presents numerous transit-oriented development opportunities and regenerative ideas. Legacy strategies are vital due to limited public transport utilization. Distinct stages of the project need to be highlighted for short-term, mid-term, and long-term timely delivery. Setting electric bus as a viable future means of transport in Gold Coast involves phasing out of old means gradually to minimize economic impact.

Social sustainability of electric bus is fundamental in Gold Coast though it is least prioritized. It will improve the quality of life of the residents because if its amenities an affordable and safe means of transport (Cuthill, 2014). Besides, electric bus transport will link the community with recreation, sports, education, health services, and employment. Also, diverse people will employ the services of electric buses during and after the games.

Uncertainties

            Proposed strategies for adoption and development of electric bus transport system may assist in curbing climate change and ensuring environmental sustainability. However, there are looming uncertainties regarding the acceptance of this project by the general public (Hamin, 2011). A section of Gold Coast residents can resist change on the ground that the government will impose heavy taxes to cover its cost. Issues of noise pollution during the construction process will arise beside the visual impacts. Furthermore, there is a notion among the local residents that the government will reserve the use of this mode of transport to tourists, health workers, and students, given the limited functionality as compared to the city's large size. It cannot be denied that linking the city in its entirety with electric bus train will take years, but still, the local communities should understand that the first phase is part of a broader strategy that will be beneficial to the environment and to the communities in the long-run.

During infrastructure development, the loss of vegetation is imminent. Erosion and sediment deposition on the waterways will also occur due to difficulty in offsetting emissions. Even worse, Gold Coast is a highly urbanized environment, hence amplification of concerns for loss of vegetation. It is hard to avoid waterway impacts during infrastructure development because the electric bus system will link landmasses divided by water bodies.

Addressing some of the uncertainties of electric bus transport involves erecting a green boulevard along the bus line. Creation of grass and tree zone on the sides of the tramline supports positive environmental changes in terms of legacy, biodiversity, and establishing Gold Coast as a greener city. In addition, the bridge over River Nerang should be elevated to allow for free passage of boats along the river, thus providing alternative forms of transport especially for greater connectivity during the Commonwealth Games.

Multi-Utility Tunnel

A multi Utility tunnel should be constructed in Gold Coast as part of decongesting the city transport system ahead of the massive influx of tourists and fans of Commonwealth Games 2018. The tunnel project should span for more than 10KM to link the Athletes Village with the sporting venue, and Carara Sports and Leisure center. Some of the benefits of this project will include improved accessibility of strategic locations during the games, minimized journey time, and improved reliability of transport network in the city. In turn, these benefits will result in reduced consumption of fuel, hence lesser noise pollution and greenhouse gas emission (Hunt et al., 2014).

To minimize the construction cost, the contractors should upgrade the existing roads within the city center to form a multi-tunnel rather than an open cut utility. The greatest impacts on the development phase of Gold City multi-utility tunnel will be area landscape and area usage because it will be constructed around areas mostly frequented by tourists. Besides, constructing a multi-utility tunnel under the sea and the rivers in the city can impact on ground water and ecology. It is projected that this road and electric bus tunnel will be the main passage into and out of the city sporting area. Unless vehicles that use nonrenewable fuels are restricted from accessing this multi-utility tunnel, air quality, ecology and the city economy will be impacted greatly. Therefore, the city officials should devise mitigation strategies for uncertainties during the exploitation phase.

Other utilities that need to be constructed in the city include tunnels that transport clean water for use during commonwealth games. Sewerage utilities are also necessary to avoid damage to the environment due to the passage of raw sewage in open-air trenches. Underground utilities should house electric cables and gas so that lesser surface impact can be noticed in the case of leakage or electric explosions (Girad et al., 2012). Adoption of multi-utility tunnels entails consideration of location, depth and its connectivity benefits. Deeper tunnels with removable lids for access ease its maintenance and sustainability. In fact, it is less prone to surface damages inflicted by construction activities, earthquakes, or other human activities. If deep tunnels are damaged, spills will hardly reach the surface, hence a lesser risk of environmental pollution and health concerns.

It is true that traditional means of installing utility are cheaper as compared to multi-utility tunnels and other modern trenches technologies. However, in the long-run, Gold Coast city will reap multiple benefits as returns on investment, years after 2018 Commonwealth Games. Traditional tunneling and development of trenches are expensive to maintain because they require periodic checkups for damage.  Sustainable costing model should factor short-term and long-term costs into consideration using indicators such as environmental impact, economic effect, and the society (Yigitcanlar, 2014). The three indicators are useful during the assessment of sustainable costs with regards to trenchless technologies, trenching, and multi-utility tunnels. Credit system should be used during the analytical process. A credit system involves awarding a unit of sustainable credit to a form that meets the assessment requirements. If two alternatives equally meet the requirements, each of them receives a sustainability credit. Then, analysts omit similar costs for all types of utility installation. The method that receives most sustainability credits is adopted as the best approach. In this model, all categories carry equal weight, even though analysts can introduce additional variables depending on the specific requirements of the project.

Cost for Implementing Provision of Infrastructure

The government of Queensland will spend an estimated amount of $125billion as a capital component to develop and maintain new, greener, and enhanced transport infrastructure for Gold Coast and South East of Queensland. Preliminary costing for the initial phase of Gold Coast utility and transport development will be $10.5 billion. Out of this amount, the city council will contribute a total amount of 2.4 billion dollars and will mainly focus on installation and upgrade of electric bus transport network. The environmentally sustainable future transport for Gold Coast has a balance of low cost and short-term actions such as the restructuring of the major bus route into electric bus system and the integration of a traffic management center. Major infrastructure projects that need heavy investments from Commonwealth government and the state (such as the provision of utility) are executable once funding is availed in mid-term or in the long-term (Yigitcanlar et al., 2015).

Hybrid Cars

Minimizing the consumption of renewable forms of energy is imperative to minimizing emissions of greenhouse gas and stabilizing climate change. Therefore, Gold Coast city should create awareness on the need to cut back consumption of electricity by opting for greener forms of energy, for instance, adoption of sustainable modes of transport and purchase of environmentally friendly and energy efficient products. In this way, the devastating effects that climate change has had over the past decades will be repealed. Private car users in Gold coast should be encouraged to turn off appliances when not in use at home, or to service their cars on a regular basis to ensure efficient use of fuel. In addition, the government should subsidize the cost of energy efficient cars that use alternative renewable fuel to encourage their purchase and adoption as private means of transport.

The city council of Gold Coast should also allocate resources for funding a purchase of environmental-friendly hybrid cars that use both petrol and electricity. Alternatively, they can also consider the acquisition of a fleet of hybrid cars that use ethanol enriched fuel to transport more than 1.5 million passengers that will attend 2018 Commonwealth Games. Piloting these projects early ensures detection and rectification of flaws, given that hybrid car technology is still at an infantry stage.

Building a formidable public transport network should be a fundamental part of city council’s intention to curb population growth in Gold Coast. If a reliable and affordable system of public transport replaces old generation vehicles, the city’s air quality will improve, thus assisting in maintaining the quality of life and health of communities residing in the city. Gold Coast will also gain a competitive advantage as a green tourist destination, setting a benchmark for other world class cities to emulate.

Further, the city council should support and fund community transport program that entails patient transport and cab service. It should initiate grants program to individuals that create innovative means of transport for environmental sustainability ahead of the tournament. Transport fares for cabs, electric bus, and trains should be lowered to discourage use of private cars in the city, hence regulation of carbon emission.

Analysis of Affordability

On an annual basis, the council’s funding should be in excess of $500 million or $10 billion over the course of green infrastructure development project. It represents a shortfall of approximately $243 million per annum. However, investors and other interested parties in the control of climate change and the development of Gold Coast will also provide funding for the project (Davoudi et al., 2011). 

Options of Funding

Transport and utility development in Gold Coast are not intended to be a fully-funded project. Instead, it should be a vision that guides and prioritize investment in utility and transport that use cleaner forms of energy for an environmentally sustainable city. A strategy like this will be employed in the assessment of funding needs and to underpin the funding bids from all levels of Queensland government. Bridging of the gap between investment needs and available revenue demands formulation of new strategies to source for additional funding. 

Economic Appraisal

From preliminary cost-benefits analysis, it is suggestible that provision of local infrastructure for Commonwealth Games in 2018 will cost $15.3 billion. However, it will generate benefits related to travel worth 22.5 billion. The proposed development in the transport sector has a tendency to support nearly 13, 900 jobs across Gold Coast city on an annual basis. Moreover, the annual regional output will increase by $500 million, thus solidifying the economy of Gold Coast.

In summary, Gold Coast city should become a world leader in the use of sustainable means of transport and utilities for environmental conservation and to stop climate change. Adoption of electric buses and hybrid cars is critical given that in 2018, the city will host Commonwealth Games and more than a million tourists will be in attendance. While the overall cost of the project is significantly higher, it has a viable return on investment and multiple benefits that can be reaped for decades.

Bibliography

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Davoudi, S., Crawford, J. and Mehmood, A. eds., 2011. Planning For Climate Change: Strategies for Mitigation and Adaptation for Spatial Planners. London: Routledge.

Girard, M., and Stewart, R.A., 2007. Implementation of Pressure and Leakage Management Strategies on the Gold Coast, Australia: A Case study. Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management, 133(3), pp.210-217.

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Yigitcanlar, T., Fabian, L. and Coiacetto, E., 2013. Challenges to Urban Transport Sustainability and Smart Transport in a Tourist City: the Gold Coast.The Open Transportation Journal, 2, pp.29-46.